Belarus has taken Armenia’s statements on CSTO membership in stride, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko told the media after he cast his ballot in the parliamentary and local elections on 25 February, BelTA has learned.
“We are absolutely calm about it. We discussed this problem with the presidents in Kazan. We are absolutely unfazed by it. It did not send anyone over the edge. If Armenia needs to be part of the CSTO, let it be, we have always supported and will support it as our ally. If they don’t want to be in the CSTO, the organization won’t collapse, it won’t be gone,” said the head of state.
At the same time, there have been no official notifications from Yerevan regarding its plans for the CSTO, the Belarusian leader remarked.
He noted that in line with Armenian laws, the issue of CSTO membership must be decided in parliament: “Pashinyan cannot make a decision whether to join or withdraw. The parliament is entitled to make such decisions. I think the majority of the Armenian MPs are sensible people. They don’t have any reason to harbour hard feelings against us, or the CSTO.”
According to the head of state, this topic has been discussed more than once, and it must be understood that Azerbaijan is not a stranger to any of CSTO member states. “There are many Muslim countries in the CSTO. You understand this too. This partly explains such a position. And, thirdly, did Armenia really want us to get involved in this war with Azerbaijan? In this case, this war would have been going on to this very day and thousands would have died,” said the Belarusian leader. “I believe that Azerbaijan and Armenia eventually arrived at the right solution to the issue, though through the war, unfortunately," Lukashenko said.
He recalled that once he acted as a mediator between Baku and Yerevan in an attempt to peacefully resolve the territorial dispute.
“Well, the war is over. What position were we supposed to take? The Armenians are our kin, people we care about. And is Azerbaijan a stranger? We were put in a bind. And there was no reason for the CSTO to get involved in this conflict. There was absolutely no slightest reason for us to do it,” Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized.
He also drew attention to Armenia's contacts with France. “They communicated with Emmanuel Macron of France all the time. France pledged to help with air defense systems, with defense matters and economy. In general, they promised to take care of Yerevan’s needs. But they are not doing it. You see what is happening in France. Therefore, politicians in Yerevan need to wake up to reality and, to put it simply, try not to lose what they have,” the president of Belarus advised.
