Russia says Armenia will not be kicked out of the CTSO

On Friday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin told the state-run media outlet RIA Novosti that if Armenia does not pay its contribution to the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) by the end of 2025, ‘nobody will probably kick anyone out, nobody will leave automatically’. He added, however, that ‘probably, it will be possible to consider the issue of modalities of further interaction between the countries’.

‘This should not be perceived as “they will leave on their own or they will be kicked out”, in no case’, Pankin added, citing ‘all sorts of different statements’ he came across from various sources which he did not name.

Pankin said that such a situation might ‘arise’ by 1 January 2026, the date marking two years since Armenia halted their payment.

Armenia’s Foreign Ministry announced in early May 2024 that Yerevan would not sign the CSTO’s 2024 budget, effectively cutting its financial contributions to the security bloc, following which Moscow criticised Yerevan’s decision.

Russia slams Armenia for cutting contributions to CSTO

Moscow has criticised Yerevan for refusing to financially contribute to the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO). Armenia’s Foreign Ministry announced in early May that Yerevan would not sign the CSTO’s 2024 budget, effectively cutting its financial contributions to the securi…

OC MediaArshaluys Barseghyan

Answering a question about the future of Armenia’s membership in the CSTO, Pankin said that they ‘always hope for the best’.

‘We are having a conversation… with Yerevan on the entire agenda: bilateral, regional, and international’, Pankin reportedly said.

He also said that Armenia did not notify them about leaving the bloc, adding that ‘they are not going to leave, they have frozen their activities, but at the same time they remain a member of the CSTO’.

‘No comparable real alternatives’

Armenia’s relations started to severely deteriorate with Russia and the CSTO after the two failed to send assistance during Azerbaijani incursions into Armenia in 2021 and 2022.

After sitting out CSTO events and pulling out from hosting a CSTO drill for months, in February 2024, Armenia announced that its participation in the CSTO was ‘basically frozen’.

Moreover, at the end of 2024, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that ‘we have crossed the point of no return,’ regarding the country’s possible return to the bloc.

‘The discrepancy between these events and their now public mutual expression makes the return of the Republic of Armenia to the CSTO increasingly difficult, if not impossible’, Pashinyan said.

Pashinyan’s statement came shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin stated during a CSTO summit in Kazakhstan that the CSTO had nothing to do with the developments in Nagorno-Karabakh and further insisted that ‘there was no aggression against Armenia’, and therefore no legal reason for launching CSTO’s protection clause.

The statement caused outrage in Armenia, with local fact-checkers quickly debunking the claims.

Outrage in Armenia over Putin’s controversial statement on CSTO

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statement that there was no external attack against Armenia, and therefore no legal reason for launching the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO)’s protection clause, has sparked outrage in Armenia, with many arguing the claim was false and served to obfu…

OC MediaArshaluys Barseghyan

Despite Armenia sitting out all CSTO events and distancing itself from the bloc, there have been occasional statements coming from the security bloc and Russian officials regarding Armenia remaining a member of the bloc.

At the same time, Russian officials have dismissed Armenia’s criticism of the CSTO calling it ‘unfounded’, additionally accusing ‘Westerners’ of ‘push[ing]’ the Armenian authorities to freeze their participation.

The Russian side also repeatedly stated that there were ‘no comparable real alternatives’ to ties with Russia and the CSTO for ensuring Armenia’s security.

Armenia to establish Defence Attaché to the EU and Belgium

Earlier, Sergei Kopyrkin, Russia’s Ambassador to Armenia said that no other country gave Armenia ‘any security guarantee that would be comparable’ to what Russia offers.

OC MediaArshaluys Barseghyan