Putin explained to Pashinyan why the CSTO did not intervene in Karabakh, and the combination of the EU and the EAEU is impossible. And he called for pro-Russian forces to be allowed into the elections

Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met in Moscow and discussed, among other things, the conflict in Karabakh, Armenia’s participation in the Collective Security Treaty (CSTO) and its relations with the European Union.

So Pashinyan stated that

Armenia does not participate in the work of the CSTO, since the authorities still cannot explain to citizens why the organization has not responded to events in the region.

“We had a specific situation in 2022 and the CSTO mechanisms should have worked, but they did not work. This led to the situation we have,” he said.

Putin responded that the CSTO’s intervention would be incorrect after the Armenian side recognized Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan in 2022. Moscow understands that Yerevan still has claims against the organization, he added.

Separately, politicians discussed Armenia’s relations with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Putin emphasized that simultaneous participation in it and accession to the EU is impossible:

“Someday, maybe years will pass, and we are the EAEU and the European Union, I hope that this will be the case, in the end, we live on the same continent, we will be able to resolve it.

But when, even before the Ukrainian crisis, we tried to come to an agreement with the Europeans to somehow work together, nothing worked.”

At the same time, he added that Moscow is counting on the participation of pro-Russian forces in the political life of Armenia, but this is “the country’s internal matter.”