No Discussion Yet on Sending CSTO Peacekeeping Forces to Armenia, Anatoly Sidorov

Anatoly Sidorov, Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff, has stated that there is currently no discussion regarding the deployment of CSTO forces to the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, according to TASS agency. “There is still no talk about sending CSTO peacekeeping forces to Armenia. We hope that the conflict will be resolved peacefully,” he said.

Sidorov noted that the proposal to send a mission was put forward by Russian President Vladimir Putin and received support from all member states of the organization.

It was mentioned the day before by CSTO spokesperson Vladimir Zainetdinov that the CSTO has started implementing the agreements reached during the emergency meeting of the Collective Security Council, which concerns sending a mission to Armenia to “assess the situation in certain areas of the Armenian border.”

Meanwhile, CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas plans to visit Armenia next week. The mission will be led by General Anatoly Sidorov. It was previously reported that the CSTO mission would arrive in Yerevan on the evening of September 15.

Recall that Azerbaijani armed forces carried out an attack along the state border of the Republic of Armenia on the night of September 13 around 00:05, initiating military operations in the directions of Syunik, Vayots Dzor, and Gegharkunik regions. The Ministry of Defense of Armenia reported that positions located in the directions of Sotk, Vardenis, Goris, Kapan, Artanish, and Ishkhanasar were subjected to shelling. Strikes are also being inflicted on civilian infrastructure. Preliminary data indicates that the Armenian side has suffered 105 casualties. The spokesperson for the Ministry of Defense, Aram Torosyan, reported during a briefing that by 20:00, firing had nearly ceased on all fronts, and no significant incidents had been recorded.