Moscow sees no risks to Azerbaijan, Armenia’s CIS membership

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin, commenting to RIA Novosti on whether there are any threats to the membership of Azerbaijan and Armenia in the CIS, pointed to the normalisation of relations between the two countries, per Caliber.Az.

Answering the question, he clarified: “Threats from whom? For whom and from whom?”

“In fact, membership in the CIS is voluntary,” he stressed.

According to the deputy foreign minister, both countries quite often join joint statements and documents adopted at various levels.

“I don’t know where the word ‘threat’ came from. This is a free association of states. Moreover, normalisation of relations is underway between Armenia and Azerbaijan. We hope that this will also be a positive factor for further participation in the CIS,” he concluded.

By Khagan Isayev