Russia has no selfish interests in South Caucasus
ArmInfo. Russia acts as an honest mediator in the settlement of regional problems, with a high degree of efficiency makes efforts in the interests of peace and maintaining a balance of interests, Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopyrkin stated in an interview with the socio-political publication "Soyuzniki. CSTO".
According to him, Russia does not pursue opportunistic goals, works for the common good, with unconditional consideration of the legitimate interests of all its partners. "This is a real contribution to the future of the region - an attempt to harmonize relations in the South Caucasus, find common approaches to solving emerging problems and resolve contradictions for the sake of establishing peace both between individual countries and in the region as a whole. This is a philosophical concept that has become a reality. It was enshrined in documents and began to be implemented. Ensuring stability, security and prosperity in the South Caucasus has always been and remains a priority for Russia. We intend to further develop mutually beneficial cooperation with all states in the region," the Russian diplomat added.
When asked whether there is a formula for achieving peace and stability in the South Caucasus, Kopyrkin noted that Moscow believes that the fate and future of the region should be determined exclusively by the countries of the region and neighboring partner states. According to him, no one from outside will bring peace and prosperity to the common home.
"If we talk about the tasks of ensuring long-term regional security, stability and socio-economic development, then the plans of the "collective West" to militarize the region and expand the military- political influence of the EU and NATO in it are completely inconsistent with them. The key to the prosperity of the South Caucasus is an inclusive dialogue, in particular within the framework of the Consultative Regional Platform "3+3", the search for mutually acceptable answers to emerging issues and countering the geopolitical dictate of extra-regional forces," the Russian ambassador believes.
Then Kopyrkin hastened to emphasize that Armenia remains a member of the CSTO and is a participant in numerous bilateral agreements in the military and military-technical fields.
"We are firmly convinced that Armenia's full participation in the work of the CSTO meets, first of all, the interests of the Armenian people, and serves to maintain peace and stability in the South Caucasus region. Membership in the Organization, as well as close ties with our country in the military sphere, have become a key factor in the progressive development of independent Armenia in recent decades. Whatever the Western "well-wishers" who are increasingly courting Yerevan may promise, there are no effective alternatives to the CSTO as a mechanism for ensuring Armenia's security today," the diplomat said.
Kopyrkin is also confident that many of the risks that Armenia faces today could have been mitigated if Yerevan had agreed to the proposal to implement a set of measures to stabilize the situation on the border with Azerbaijan through the CSTO in September 2022. "We were talking about serious initiatives, including military-technical assistance, sending a monitoring mission, and assistance in training border troops. Unfortunately, the Armenian leadership chose to invite a mission from the European Union, which does not protect the state's borders at all, but under the guise of "monitoring" is collecting intelligence against Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia," the ambassador concluded.