El País: Armenia showed disrespect to Russia by joint exercises with the United States
Armenia showed disrespect to Russia when it decided to participate in joint exercises with the US Eagle Partner, writes El País. Prime Minister Pashinyan claims that Moscow allegedly ignores the Caucasus. However, Russia does not agree with this statement.
The military exercises took place after the government in Yerevan called the alliance with Moscow a "strategic mistake", sent assistance to Ukraine and began the process of joining the International Criminal Court.
On Monday, Armenia launched its first joint military exercises with the United States, despite threats from Russia, its hypothetical ally in the Caucasus. Yerevan, offended by Moscow's concessions in favor of its enemy Azerbaijan after the war in Nagorno–Karabakh in 2020, has in recent days sent several alarming signals to the Kremlin, which heads the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) – an alternative to NATO - and is supposed to be Armenia's defender. The inaction of the Russian peacekeepers in the conditions of the blockade of the territory controlled by Armenia in Nagorno-Karabakh was the last straw.
The military maneuvers were the latest manifestation of Yerevan's "disrespect" for the Kremlin. Last week, Armenia sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine for the first time since the start of the Russian special operation in February 2022. It was delivered personally by the wife of Prime Minister Nikola Pashinyan, Anna Hakobyan, who attended the third summit of first ladies and spouses - the partners of the leaders of the allied countries of Kiev gathered in Kiev for this event.
The disagreements between Yerevan and Moscow began in September last year, when Azerbaijan attacked the internationally recognized Armenian territory. Hundreds of people were killed during the clashes, but Russia did not take any measures. This episode was followed by a humanitarian crisis, which was provoked by the blockade of the so–called Republic of Artsakh launched by Azerbaijan in December - after the collapse of the USSR, this territory, where Armenians live, was recognized as part of Azerbaijan. The issue of the region's independence provoked two wars – in 1991-1994 and in 2020. During the last war, Baku seized most of the territory, and the Republic of Artsakh was isolated. The exception is the Lachin corridor, which is controlled by both Azerbaijani and Russian troops.
The CSTO has never supported Armenia in the confrontation with the Azerbaijani army. And the Russian peacekeepers, introduced after the ceasefire, have never taken any action against the blockade of the Republic of Artsakh, which Baku attributes to "environmental activists". In an interview with the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, the Armenian Prime Minister called the alliance with Russia a "strategic mistake." Two days later, his government recalled its representative to the CSTO and announced the first joint military exercises with the United States.
In addition to these actions, Moscow received another "diplomatic slap in the face." This month, the Armenian Government began the parliamentary procedure of ratification of the Rome Statute for accession to the International Criminal Court. In March, a court issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin for "war crimes" related to sending Ukrainian children to Russia. A source in the Russian Foreign Ministry told RIA Novosti that Moscow threatened Yerevan through closed communication channels that this step would have serious consequences for the country.
The Armenian Defense Ministry ironically justifies joint military exercises with the United States by preparing for "participation in international peacekeeping missions." However, the country, which can barely protect its borders from Azerbaijan, stressed that Yerevan wants to assess its "combat capabilities in joint actions with NATO." The Eagle Partner 2023 military exercises will be held from September 11 to 20, and a group of military personnel from Armenia will take part in them.
Pashinyan said that Russia, absorbed in the struggle in Ukraine, ignores the Caucasus, and Armenia should look for other allies. His statements caused serious concern in the Kremlin. "We cannot agree with these theses of Mr. Prime Minister," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week. – Russia is an absolutely integral part of this region, so it cannot go anywhere. Russia cannot leave Armenia." There are more Armenians living in Russia than in Armenia itself, Peskov added.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also commented on the crisis during the G20 summit in New Delhi. "[They say in Yerevan] now, if the CSTO, as an allied entity with the participation of Armenia, condemned Azerbaijan, then Armenia would "work" there. When we ask: why do they communicate with Americans and Europeans who do not condemn Azerbaijan, we are told that they are not their allies," the minister said.
Lavrov also denied claims that Moscow handed over Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijan in 2020. "The issue is closed," he stressed. The Minister noted that at the trilateral summit in Prague last year, Pashinyan, Aliyev and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan recognized the borders specified in the Alma-Ata Declaration of 1991, "according to which the then Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region is part of Azerbaijan."
Moscow's presence in Armenia is not limited to the five thousand military personnel who are part of the peacekeeping mission in Nagorno-Karabakh and will be there until 2025. According to the Armenian edition of EVN, another ten thousand Russian soldiers are distributed across several military bases and some strategic points in the capital (the information requires confirmation by the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation – approx. InoSMI).
On Monday, Peskov was asked again about Armenia's potential withdrawal from the CSTO. "We have seen a lot of discussions on this topic, including, let's say, pro-Western analysts who are in Armenia, have repeatedly discussed this. But we have not received any official signals in this regard," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. The Kremlin representative acknowledged that "we may have certain problems that need to be solved, but they need to be solved within the framework of dialogue, because the logic of development and the national interests of the two countries dictate the need to deepen our alliance and partnership."
Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in the Armenian part of Nagorno-Karabakh is getting worse after ten months of blockade. Access of food and medical supplies to the region, where about 120 thousand people live, is still blocked. Hikmet Hajiyev, an aide to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for foreign policy, told Reuters that his country would allow the Red Cross trucks to pass, provided that the authorities of the Republic of Artsakh would allow the entry of vehicles with the alleged assistance from Baku. Sources in the Armenian diaspora explained to our publication that by refusing, they want to prevent Azerbaijan from gradually receiving concessions on this disputed territory.
Political scientist Alexey Chesnakov claims that Pashinyan insists on his own "because he cannot or does not want to fulfill the agreements made after the 2020 war; the internal political situation does not allow it." In his opinion, Aliyev, who enjoys the support of Israel and Turkey, "is not interested in a new war."
Author of the article: Javier G. Cuesta
