ASTANA, November 28. /TASS/. Armenia has not yet made any statements regarding its withdrawal from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), and Yerevan continues to support all the documents adopted at the organization's summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated in response to questions from reporters.
"Armenia has not announced its withdrawal, at least not yet. It said it was taking a pause, but it supports all the documents that are being adopted at our today's meeting," Putin stated. He also suggested that there is a possibility Armenia could return to full participation in the CSTO. "There is a probability that Armenia will return to full-scale work within this organization. We will see," Putin added.
He also stated that the CSTO should not have gotten involved in the Karabakh conflict because Armenia was not exposed to any external aggression during that crisis. "The CSTO has nothing to do with it, because there was no external aggression against Armenia," he said. "The CSTO is designed to protect member countries from external aggression. The events in Karabakh have their own specifics: Armenia did not recognize Karabakh as an independent state and certainly did not include Karabakh in its borders. So, everything that happened in Karabakh has nothing to do with Armenia legally. Therefore, it is a bit strange to claim that the CSTO should fight in this enclave," the Russian leader added.
Putin also commented on the CSTO itself, stating that the organization is not only "alive" but actively developing. He emphasized that the countries involved in its work are committed to maintaining strong ties, both now and in the future. "All countries that take an active part in its work are interested in maintaining these contacts," he remarked.
"As for the clause according to which any CSTO member country should provide assistance to another state that has been subjected to aggression, no one has any doubts about it," the Russian leader emphasized.