President Putin opens up on Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict and CSTO Pact
What you need to know:
'I am in constant, lively working contact with the Prime Minister of Armenia, and Armenia does not have any questions about the quality of Russia’s fulfilment of its allied obligations,' said Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow will fulfil all its obligations within the framework of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), even as conflict rages on in Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“As you know, Armenia is a member of the CSTO, we have certain obligations to Armenia within the framework of this treaty. Combat operations, to our great regret, are still ongoing, they are not being conducted on the territory of Armenia.
As for Russia’s fulfilment of its treaty obligations within the framework of this Agreement, we have always fulfilled, are fulfilling and will continue to fulfil our obligations,” the Russian President said in an interview.
Putin added: “ I am in constant, lively working contact with the Prime Minister of Armenia, and Armenia does not have any questions about the quality of Russia’s fulfilment of its allied obligations.”
“We hope that this conflict will be ended in the very near future, but if it is not completely settled, apparently, this is still a long way off, but in any case, we urge, and I want to say this again, we urge for a ceasefire, “Putin said.
He emphasized that this must be done “as quickly as possible.” “This is a tragedy, we are very worried, because people living in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Nagorno-Karabakh are not strangers to us,” the Russian President said.
He accentuated that about 2 million Azerbaijanis and over 2 million Armenians live in Russia. “A huge number of Russian citizens maintain close, friendly ties with both republics. Of course, this is a huge tragedy, people are dying, heavy losses on both sides,” Putin said.
