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Any threat to CSTO states is real threat to entire Organization – MP on agreements of Armenian and Russian Presidents
Interstate relations between Armenia and Russia are extensive, with a multilayer and diverse political agenda, and from this point of view the September 7 meeting of Presidents of Armenia and Russia, Serzh Sargsyan and Vladimir Putin, in Moscow was a logical continuation of traditional meetings of heads of the two friendly countries, MP of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia’s (RPA) parliamentary faction Khosrov Harutyunyan told Panorama.am.

The deputy said that Armenia became a full member of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), and Armenian-Russian relations are dynamically developing so the results of the past year need to be summed up.

“Although, as Russian President Putin indicated, the trade turnover between the two states has recently declined, there are objective reasons for the decline. And one of the main goals of that meeting was to discuss measures aimed at developing mutually beneficial trade and economic links. I think the agreements signed are of great importance from this viewpoint,” the MP said.
He stressed that the agreement to cut the price of Russian gas price at the border by $25 creates favorable conditions to boost exports and also allows the Central Bank of Armenia to be freer in conducting its monetary and credit policy.

K. Harutyunyan underlined the importance of the agreements reached during the Moscow visit concerning the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia and retaining the capacities of the current nuclear power plant in Metsamor. “It is a matter of strategic importance for us,” the deputy said.

He also spoke of the significance of the agreement to upgrade the arsenal of the Armenian army.

“Given the geopolitical threats, dangers and challenges that exist in the region – the Middle East and the South Caucasus – and are beyond the will of Armenia, bringing the country’s military strength into line with modern standards is the task number one in terms of ensuring the security,” Harutyunyan said.

He indicated the agreement to address a number of defense issue within the framework of CSTO as yet another achievement of Sargsyan-Putin meeting.

“It is time to voice the thesis that any threat to Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) member states is a real threat to the entire CSTO - regardless of whether this threat arises on Afghan-Tajik border, in Central Asia or on Armenian-Azerbaijani border in the South Caucasus. In any case, a threat to some member state of CSTO or other is a threat to the whole Organization,” Khosrov Harutyunyan said in conclusion.

As was reported, during his working visit to the Russian Federation, President Serzh Sargsyan had a meeting on September 7 with RF President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Serzh Sargsyan thanked Russia and V. Putin for efforts to look for new avenues aimed at the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. “In the last two weeks, the situation on the border is very tense. Besides large-caliber firearms, the Azerbaijani side is using artillery. Of course, we are forced to respond. I will dwell more on it during the CSTO summit in Dushanbe,” the Armenian president said.