News - Russia embassy official: Many risks facing Armenia could have been minimized in 2022

Many risks that Armenia is facing today could have been minimized if in 2022 Yerevan had agreed to implement multifaceted measures along the CSTO lines to stabilize the situation on the border with Azerbaijan. Maksim Seleznyov, a counselor-envoy at the Russian embassy in Armenia, said this during a discussion on Wednesday. Seleznyov noted that these measures included the technico-military assistance, the CSTO monitoring mission, and the assistance to the Armenian border guards. "Unfortunately, the choice was made in favor of the EU civilian [monitoring] mission, which does not protect the borders of the state, but is engaged in collecting intelligence data about Russia and Iran. Despite the criticism being made in Yerevan of the CSTO, Russia is convinced that Armenia's full participation in that organization meets, first and foremost, the interests of the Armenian people, and serves as a factor in maintaining peace and stability in the region," added Seleznyov. In his assessment, Armenia's membership in the CSTO and ties with Russia in the military and technico-military sectors have become important factors in the progressive development of independent Armenia in recent decades. "We are really interested in our neighbors establishing a strong and long-term peace in the South Caucasus. Moreover, the goals of the West, where the Armenian leadership is now actively searching for security partners, are radically contradictory. One of the tasks of the West is the disruption of integration processes in Eurasia; our integration processes are like a bone in its throat. In order to achieve their goals, the US and its allies are ready to take any step, up to the destabilization of the internal political and socioeconomic situation near our borders. The main interest of the West is to promote the theory about Russia's strategic defeat; but this will not happen," stressed the official of the Russian embassy in Armenia.