Armenia's Foreign Intelligence Service sees no reason to end freeze on CSTO membership

YEREVAN, January 23. /ARKA/. The annual report of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Armenia states that the viability of military blocs will still be in question in 2025.

"In this regard, despite the provisions of the founding treaty, the inability (non-viability) of the CSTO to respond to the problems of the South Caucasus, which are the statutory goals of the CSTO, is unlikely to change in 2025. We consider it improbable that the grounds for freezing Armenia's membership in the CSTO will disappear in 2025. In our view, this means that the authority of this structure will continue to be in significant doubt," the document says.

At the same time, it is noted that the growth rate of defense spending by states both in the region and beyond, along with the ongoing development of weapons and the military industry, will continue, leading to the conclusion that resolving issues through military means will remain the primary practice for actors in our small region.

"These realities will also continue to generate asymmetric risks for states like Armenia, with objectively limited reserves of material and intangible resources," the FIS states.

Yerevan's position on the CSTO

In February 2024, Armenia announced the freezing of its membership in the CSTO and later also refused to pay membership fees to the organization. According to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the CSTO has failed to fulfill its defense obligations to Armenia (particularly in 2021-2022) and creates threats to the security, existence, sovereignty, and statehood of the republic.

In June, Pashinyan stated that the next logical step in relations with the CSTO would be to leave the organization, but shortly afterward, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan clarified that the prime minister meant that the Armenian authorities themselves would decide when to leave the organization.