YEREVAN. – We want to make amendments to the CSTO Charter, and they imply creation of a “partner” status. The Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia, Shavarsh Kocharyan, stated this at Tuesday’s National Assembly session debates on the matter of ratifying the second protocol on amendments to the Collective Security Treaty.

As per Kocharyan, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Charter assumes that countries, or international organizations, may receive observer status in the CSTO, but this process is not described in detail.

“The additions shall clarify the matter of granting status,” Kocharyan explained, “as well as decide in what cases that decision may be reconsidered.”

He added that the status of “CSTO partner” is being introduced with these additions, and the two statuses can be obtained by a country, or an organization, solely by consensus—based on an agreement by all CSTO member countries.

Thus, in his words, there is no need to worry that Azerbaijan can obtain any status within the CSTO without the consent of CSTO member Armenia.

Moreover, the deputy FM noted that if any country becomes a CSTO partner or observer but starts acting contrary to its respective obligations, it will be immediately deprived of this status.