Armenia is not negotiating on the withdrawal of the European Union (EU) civilian monitoring mission from the country. This was stated by the secretary of the Security Council of Armenia, Armen Grigoryan, speaking with reporters Thursday.

“The issue concerns the relations between the EU and Armenia. We [i.e. Armenia] hope that Brussels will extend the mandate of this mission. We do not improve our relations with any country at the expense of a third country. Armenia believes that it should strengthen its relations with the US and EU countries,” Grigoryan added.

Also, he assured that no decision on the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) can be made in secret.

“We [i.e. Armenia] assess the situation and make decisions based on that assessment. We have made a political decision [regarding the CSTO] and announced it publicly. When a [new] decision is made on the CSTO, it will also be announced publicly,” noted the secretary of the Security Council of Armenia.