"We have requested official explanations from our Armenian partners about their participation in NATO exercises. We will decide on our reaction when we receive the answer," she said.
"Certainly, Yerevan's refusal to host CSTO maneuvers causes regret and does not contribute to enhancing regional security," the diplomat stressed.
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Russia has requested official clarification from Armenia about its participation in US-led military drills in Europe, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.
ReplyDelete"The US and their allies try to discredit the partnership between the countries in the region and our country, drag them into different forms of cooperation. They are clearly anti-Russian, if not russophobic at times. Such NATO actions lead to destabilization of the situation in various regions, to growth of conflict potential, to creation of new separation lines. We have requested official explanations from our Armenian partners regarding their participation in the NATO drills. We will decide on our response upon receiving the answer," Zakharova told a press briefing.
At the same time, Yerevan's refusal to host the Collective Security Treaty Organization's (CSTO) military maneuvers is regrettable and does not contribute to the improvement of local security, Zakharova added.
Last week, Armenian Ministry of Defense spokesman Aram Torosyan said that Armenia was planning to participate in two US-led military drills in Europe, KFOR (Kosovo Force) and Saber Junction. The US Defense Department announced that Armenia would participate in the Defender-2023 multinational military training. However, later the announcement was corrected and Armenia was removed from the list of participants.
In January, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the defense ministry had informed the CSTO it deemed it inappropriate to host the organization's Indestructible Brotherhood-2023 drills in the country this year due to continuing tensions with neighboring Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh. On February 14, Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff Colonel General Anatoly Sidorov said that the joint exercise would take place in Kyrgyzstan instead.