Armenia warns about leaving Russian-led military alliance

Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan has warned that his country may leave the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) if Russia cannot adhere to its obligations.

In particular, the Kremlin doesn't send weapons that were not only ordered but also prepaid by Yerevan. Furthermore, Moscow didn't guarantee Armenia's safety during the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in 2020, the official said in an interview with Novaya Gazeta Europe on May 13.

"Over the last years, the security architecture in the world and in our region particularly has changed drastically. … Obligations based on agreements are working no more. Our whole security concept was built around that idea, and a new one is not there yet," Grigoryan said.

Answering the question about defence contracts, he revealed that it's not only the 2021 deal "worth millions of dollars" that was thwarted by the Russian side, there were other contracts as well. Worth expanding, here Grigoryan talks about a series of classified contracts Armenia signed with Russia during the Armiya-2021 defence forum in Moscow.

In contrast, during the 2010–2020 period, Armenia received 94% of the weapons pledged by the Russian Federation. In this context, we say "received" rather than "bought" because the Kremlin handed this military equipment on very generous terms, either donated as military aid for good, or on credit.

The total amount of military goods received by Armenia is estimated at 5 billion dollars, it included such assets as Iskander short-range missile systems, S-300 long-range and Tor short-range air defence systems, and Su-30 fighters.

When asked straightforwardly, whether Yerevan ever considered quitting the CSTO, the official confirmed that "there were talks about it, it's a natural reaction."

The Ukrainian-based Defense Express said on May 15 that "although generally speaking, this interview can be interpreted as just a signal by Yerevan to Moscow rather than a commitment. And the signal is very simple: if the Kremlin keeps holding the promised weapons and doing nothing to ensure Armenia's safety, the latter will find a new partner",

"But whether someone in Moscow actually cares about Armenia and its problems in the current situation is another question. This a question that starts bothering not Armenia alone but also the Middle Asia countries belonging to the CSTO and depending on the Russian defence industry," the report added.