Zakharova to Pashinyan: "Stop shifting responsibility onto Moscow, the CSTO, the previous leadership, and the AAC – it`s shameless."

ArmInfo. Stop deflecting blame and shifting responsibility to Moscow, the CSTO, Azerbaijan, the previous leadership of Armenia, the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) and Armenian entrepreneurs, the Armenians of Karabakh, their ancestors, and their children—it's shameless. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova wrote this on her Telegram channel, responding to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's response at a briefing for journalists on August 27.

In particular, as the Russian Foreign Minister recalled, Pashinyan was asked: "What substantive changes in relations with Russia does the government's program for 2026-2032 imply, and does this mean abandoning the status of strategic alliance?" In response, Pashinyan replied: "The events of September 2022 unfolded before your eyes. Strategic partnership must mean strategic partnership. If we now write 'strategic partnership' in the document, you will ask why Russia and the CSTO failed to fulfill their security obligations in September 2022. What should I tell you?"

After this, Zakharova noted that she also had questions and suggestions for the Armenian prime minister. "The elections in your country have passed. You can no longer pull the wool over the eyes of your people. Muster up the courage and, at least once, tell the truth, how it really was," she wrote. Specifically, the Russian Foreign Minister recalled that when tensions flared along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in September 2022, Russia provided assistance in achieving a peaceful settlement. "Armenia then turned to the CSTO, and the CSTO, contrary to your lies, responded promptly: a mission was sent to assess the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border - specifically on Armenian territory, as envisaged by the Organization's statutory documents. You then personally met with the CSTO Secretary General in Yerevan. So, in your opinion, he came as a visit to see the beauty of the South Caucasus? No, it was a CSTO Mission, an Organization that protects the territory of member states. You have done nothing to ensure Armenia's security, either legally or politically," Zakharova said. She then recalled how the CSTO Collective Security Council summit was held in Yerevan in November 2022, and the day before, serious work had been done at the level of defense and foreign ministers to agree on the decision to deploy the Organization's mission. "The text was ready, all that remained was for the leaders to sign it. Which, as is known, you refused. The decision envisaged, among other things, the following: immediate political and diplomatic measures to ensure the territorial integrity of Armenia; provision of military-technical assistance, assistance to border troops in training and equipping them with technical means, preparation of a plan for the operational deployment of the CSTO Collective Rapid Reaction Forces on the territory of Armenia. An important difference from the European observers would be that the CSTO mission would be authorized not just to 'look through binoculars,' but to directly report on the situation on the border and propose measures to resolve possible crisis situations," the Russian Foreign Minister noted. She called on Pashinyan to recall other events of that autumn. "On October 6, 2022 - three weeks after the border incidents to which you now refer, you personally, under the supervision of the EU, obviously trusting Brussels and Paris, signed the Prague Declaration, in which you recognized the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. "They stated bluntly: 'The territory of Azerbaijan is 86,600 square kilometers, including Nagorno-Karabakh.' If you're tempted to call the ambassador or, as you like, write another note of protest, think twice. Because then you'll have to point out which of these statements is untrue. Everything stated above is a historical fact," Zakharova stated.

In conclusion, the Russian Foreign Minister called on Pashinyan to stop shifting blame onto everyone but himself. "And when you're asked uncomfortable questions, stop deflecting blame, shifting responsibility, and shifting it onto everyone you can reach, anyone you personally don't like: Moscow, the CSTO, Azerbaijan, the previous leadership of Armenia, the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Armenian entrepreneurs you're now so actively fighting, the Armenians of Karabakh, their ancestors, and their children. This is unconscionable. Everyone is to blame for you. You're the only one who isn't to blame," Zakharova concluded.