Kremlin spox: Russia wants to clarify Pashinyan's words on diversification of security relations

Moscow maintains contacts with Yerevan and expects to get information about what Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan meant when he spoke about the need to "diversify security relations", Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, Caliber.Az reports citing Russian media.

Earlier in an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Pashinyan said that the events in Karabakh "essentially brought" Yerevan to a decision on the need to "diversify security relations".

A Kremlin spokesman said Moscow was not inclined to be guided by the Wall Street Journal interview.

"We need to understand exactly what Mr Pashinyan was talking about. In a conversation with our Armenian friends, we expect to get all the information on this matter. And, of course, it is not proper for Russia and Armenia to communicate through newspapers, especially the Wall Street Journal. That's why we continue the conversation, dialogue with our Armenian friends, and we will continue to do so, we have a very broad agenda," he said.

Referring to Russia's mediating role in the peaceful resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, the Kremlin spokesman noted that the Russian Federation continues to make attempts to help Armenia and Azerbaijan reach a peace agreement.

"This is necessary for stabilising the situation in the region and reaching a more positive constructive level of life in the entire region," he added.

Earlier, Pashinyan also said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal that Armenia is not discussing the withdrawal of Russian military bases from its territory. Rather, the country's authorities are trying to understand the operation of security treaties - both bilateral with Russia and at the CSTO level.