Russia’s Shoigu: Armenia cannot "sit on different trains"

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu has stated that Armenia cannot “sit on different trains with the same body”, adding it must choose a direction that aligns with its national interests following Yerevan’s increased engagement with Western countries.

Commenting on Armenia’s plans for closer ties with the European Union while remaining a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), Shoigu said countries must make a clear foreign policy choice, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

He claimed Armenia has recently stopped participating in CSTO activities, saying its absence is often justified by repeated explanations linked to the organisation’s response during events in Nagorno-Karabakh.

According to Shoigu, Moscow gained a clearer understanding of the role of European observers on the Armenia–Azerbaijan border.

He recalled that after the end of the most intense phase of the Armenia–Azerbaijan conflict, the CSTO had offered to deploy observers.

He said Armenia initially saw no need for them, but later agreed to the deployment of European Union observers, which were first described as a temporary two-year mission.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov