Analyst: Russia risks losing its ally and ‘strategic’ partner in the South Caucasus
14.06.2016,
14:42
If Russia continues its current policy it risks losing its ally Armenia and its ‘strategic’ partner Azerbaijan, a political analyst Hayk Khalatyan said today.
YEREVAN, June 14. /ARKA/. If Russia continues its current policy it risks losing its ally Armenia and its ‘strategic’ partner Azerbaijan, a political analyst Hayk Khalatyan said today.
"Russia must realize that a possible outcome of its current policy, when it avoids making a choice between the two sides is that neither Armenia nor Azerbaijan will remain in its zone of influence", Khalatyan said speaking at an international conference on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, hosted by the Russian-Armenian (Slavonic) University in Yerevan.
He noted that as a result of this policy Russia’s influence in Armenia will slash dramatically and make Armenia’s friendship with Russia "unprofitable". According Khalatyan, what Armenia needs is not military support of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), but Russia’s political support.
Khalatyan recalled that the president of Belarus, which is Armenia’s ally in the CSTO, called Azerbaijani president Aliyev to find out what happened on the line of contact in Nagorno-Karabakh in early April instead of calling his Armenian counterpart.
Khalatyan also pointed out Kazakhstan’s stance, another ally of Armenia in the CSTO, when in a show of support for Azerbaijan it boycotted a meeting of prime ministers of the countries making the Eurasian Economic Union, scheduled to take place in Yerevan.
"All this can not but irritate Armenia’s public at large. I think that now Armenian authorities will have to take a tougher stance in relations with Russia," he said.-0-
"Russia must realize that a possible outcome of its current policy, when it avoids making a choice between the two sides is that neither Armenia nor Azerbaijan will remain in its zone of influence", Khalatyan said speaking at an international conference on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, hosted by the Russian-Armenian (Slavonic) University in Yerevan.
He noted that as a result of this policy Russia’s influence in Armenia will slash dramatically and make Armenia’s friendship with Russia "unprofitable". According Khalatyan, what Armenia needs is not military support of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), but Russia’s political support.
Khalatyan recalled that the president of Belarus, which is Armenia’s ally in the CSTO, called Azerbaijani president Aliyev to find out what happened on the line of contact in Nagorno-Karabakh in early April instead of calling his Armenian counterpart.
Khalatyan also pointed out Kazakhstan’s stance, another ally of Armenia in the CSTO, when in a show of support for Azerbaijan it boycotted a meeting of prime ministers of the countries making the Eurasian Economic Union, scheduled to take place in Yerevan.
"All this can not but irritate Armenia’s public at large. I think that now Armenian authorities will have to take a tougher stance in relations with Russia," he said.-0-
