YEREVAN, November 21. /TASS/. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan will not take part in the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Russia-led security bloc) events in Minsk on November 22 and 23, the Armenian foreign ministry said on Tuesday.
"During a phone call with Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergey Aleinik, the sides exchanged views of the Armenian-Belarusian agenda. They touched upon issues linked with the CSTO activities. Ararat Mirzoyan noted that he would not be able to take part in a joint meeting of the CSTO foreign and defense ministers and the Committee of Security Council Secretaries scheduled to be held in Minsk on November 22," it said.
Earlier, both Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Armenian foreign ministry officials repeatedly stressed that Yerevan was not looking at withdrawing from the CSTO but it recent months Armenia has been skipping the organization’s events. Moreover, Armenia has recalled its ambassador to the CSTO and has not appointed a new one.