Armenia freezes its participation in CSTO, says organisation's chief

Armenia has suspended its participation in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Secretary-General of the organisation Imangali Tasmagambetov has stated.

Tasmagambetov said the Secretariat continues to inform Armenia about decisions being taken, and Yerevan does not obstruct them, Caliber.Az reports, citing TASS.

“Armenia has frozen its participation in the organisation. We keep it informed of all materials and documents that are discussed and adopted at the Secretariat level,” the SCTO chief said.

“They do not take part in the discussions, but they do not hinder the adoption of these documents in a limited format, as happened today at the Collective Security Council: all these documents were sent to Armenia, they were informed, and we received a document from them confirming that they do not object to the approval of these documents in a limited format,” he explained.

Armenia’s rejection of active participation in the CSTO stems from deep frustration over what Yerevan sees as the bloc’s failure to assist during periods of heightened tension and conflict with Azerbaijan. The turning point came after the 2020 war and especially the border clashes of 2022, when Armenia formally requested CSTO support under the collective defence clause but received only fact-finding missions and statements instead of military or political backing.

Yerevan argues that the CSTO has not fulfilled its treaty obligations and accuses the organisation of ignoring Armenian security concerns due to the dominant influence of Russia and the bloc’s desire to maintain balanced relations with Azerbaijan. As a result, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government gradually froze engagement, skipped CSTO summits, suspended participation in military exercises, and began openly questioning the alliance’s relevance for Armenia’s security.

By Khagan Isayev