NEWS.am digest: Pashinyan arrives at CSTO summit in Moscow, Finland and Sweden to joint NATO

Collective Security Treaty Organisation member states leaders gathered in Moscow for the Summit of Leaders of the CSTO.

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During the summit, Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan, noted that last year, when Azerbaijani troops invaded the sovereign territory of Armenia, Yerevan turned to the CSTO with a request to launch the response mechanisms of the CSTO: However, the Organization didn’t react as Armenia expected, Pashinyan said. He also noted that despite Armenia’s warnings, the CSTO members have been selling weapons to the country unfriendly to Armenia, and as a result, these weapons were used against Armenia and the Armenian people.

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Pashinyan also noted that the CSTO countries should act as a united front on the international platforms.

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Following the summit, the member states leaders have issued a joint statement and also signed a number of documents.

The member states also noted that they are ready to establish practical cooperation with the NATO.

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The leaders of the CSTO member states also declared their strong condemnation of attempts to falsify history, including in terms of countering Nazi aggression.

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Protests continue in Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh 'concession' fears and demands for the governments’ resignation. Today again the Armenian opposition Resistance Movement held car rallies in five directions in Yerevan. 91 participants of protests have been forcibly apprehended by the police in Yerevan, according to the police press service, all of them

for failure to obey the police orders. Even larger rallies are planned for 8 a.m. on Tuesday.

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FINLAND, SWEDEN AND NATO

The leaders of Finland and Sweden have confirmed their intention to join the NATO, signifying a historic Nordic policy shift. Abandoning decades of military non-alignment, the two countries’ governments will present their proposals to their respective parliaments and are expected to formally submit a joint membership application to the 30-member alliance as soon as the decisions are ratified.

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Meanwhile, Russian president Vladimir Putin said Russia has no problems with Finland and Sweden, their entry into NATO does not pose a threat to Russia, but will provoke a respective response from Russia.

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The Russian military opened a humanitarian corridor in Azovstal, Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

On May 16, as a result of talks with representatives of Ukrainian military personnel blocked on the territory of the Azovstal metallurgical plant in Mariupol, an agreement was reached on the removal of the wounded, the ministry said.

The injured have been taken to the hospital on the territory of the Donetsk People's Republic.

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McDonald's has said it will permanently leave Russia after more than 30 years and has started to sell its restaurants.

The move comes after it temporarily closed its 850 outlets in March.

The fast food giant said it made the decision because of the "humanitarian crisis" and "unpredictable operating environment" caused by the Ukraine war.