Procedure for Armenia's Exit from CSTO Not Discussed at Almaty Meeting of Foreign Ministers

Armenia, following a recent tradition, did not participate in the meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of CSTO member states. Yerevan has not submitted official documents to the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) for the members to discuss the possible consequences of Armenia's exit. This was stated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a press conference following the meeting of the CSTO foreign ministers in Almaty.

According to him, the procedure for Armenia's exit from the CSTO was not discussed at the meeting of the foreign ministers of the member countries, as no relevant issue was raised. Lavrov remarked that the potential consequences of such a step were also not discussed. 'As I mentioned, yes, today the Armenian minister was not present at the meeting, but there were no documents from Armenia, no official actions that would necessitate a discussion of the consequences of what happened,' he added.

It is noteworthy that Prime Minister Pashinyan announced in a parliamentary speech on June 13 that the next logical step would be Armenia's exit from that alliance. He reiterated his criticism of the CSTO and accused it of inaction. In response, the Russian Foreign Ministry stated that no one is holding other participants in the CSTO by force, and if there is something to announce, they should do so openly and directly.