Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan today received Secretary-General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Stanislav Zas, the news service of the Government of Armenia reports.

Pashinyan welcomed Zas’s visit to Armenia and stated the following: “Armenia highly appreciates its accession to the CSTO, which is one of the key elements of Armenia’s security system, and the CSTO has a wide zone of responsibility. Unfortunately, tension is growing in quite a lot of places, and this is also the reason why Armenia is very seriously preparing for its chairmanship in the CSTO, with respect to the challenges that have emerged within the meaning of security of Armenia and in a broader sense. I believe we need to overcome the challenges and solve the issues in the zone of responsibility of the CSTO with honor.

You know that, unfortunately, the situation on Armenia’s borders has been crucial for the past two to three months and poses a threat to Armenia’s national security. Unfortunately, Azerbaijan’s Armed Forces have been in our territory illegally for a few months. Of course, there are many discussions on the response of the CSTO to this situation. I must say that this is the first time we are facing such a situation in the CSTO and need to explore the situation so that we raise the level of effectiveness of the CSTO’s mechanisms. It is necessary to use the existing mechanisms of the CSTO the way they need to be used.

I would also like to say that Armenia’s position is constructive in the sense of the regional agenda. Of course, Armenia is committed to implementing the agreements recorded in the statements of November 9 and January 11. It’s very important for Armenia to create necessary conditions and provide specific solutions to unblock links in the region, as well as launch the process of demarcation and delimitation of the border with Azerbaijan. Of course, for this, it is necessary to create conditions.

In his turn, CSTO Secretary-General Stanislav Zas stated the following: “I am sincerely glad to see you. The last time we met was in February 2020. The recent public-political event that took place in Armenia was the parliamentary elections, and taking the opportunity, I would like to congratulate you on your victory in the elections. Of course, we were following the elections with concern, but thank God, everything went smoothly.

Of course, there are problems, and as you mentioned, not only in Armenia. The CSTO also discusses the issues that exist in other regions in the zone of responsibility of the CSTO. The situation hasn’t gotten better over the past year. You know what is happening in Tajikistan and Afghanistan. The situation is being controlled by the border guards and servicemen of Tajikistan, but there is very serious concern about that region. You remember the conflict that emerged on the Tajikistan-Kyrgyzstan border, and unfortunately, several dozens of people died, including children. Thank God we succeeded in solving the situation through the presidents’ efforts, but the situation is still dire.

Of course, all this has a negative impact on our countries. You already highlighted the issues that are creating this situation in the Caucasus region.

You called my attention to the crisis on the border. I visited the border today and the army’s units. Frankly, I see that there is no border now. It’s a de facto line of contact for armed clashes. However, all efforts need to be made to fix this situation. I believe the development of an action plan needs to be one of the primary issues of the government. I am certain you will solve the issue diplomatically and politically. We talked about this for quite a long time at the level of foreign ministers in May, and there is a common understanding that it is necessary to do everything possible to bring the sides to the negotiating table and solve the issue.”

The interlocutors discussed the opportunities for solving the situation on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border through peaceful negotiations, the priorities of the Armenian chairmanship in the CSTO, the actions aimed at ensuring security in the zone of responsibility of the CSTO, as well as improvement and increase of effectiveness of the CSTO.