By Kevin Zhang
On September 14th, 2022, Armenia applied to the Collective Security Treaty Organization for military support following an Azeri attack on its territory.
Armenian delegates made the request to the CSTO following an escalation of clashes along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border on September 13th, 2022. Since then, around 300 people have died on both sides as a result of the fighting, with dozens of others injured.
Russia, which backs Armenia, and is also the leading nation within the CSTO, has been mediating with Turkey, which supports Azerbaijan, to find a way to calm the conflict.
Article 4 of the CSTO states that an attack on a member state is considered an attack on all members, said Prime Minister Pashinyan in parliament.
“We asked support from CSTO, including military support to restore Armenia’s territorial integrity and ensure the withdrawal of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces from the territory of Armenia.”
He said that the Armenians also meant the invasion on May 12, 2021 of the Sotk-Khoznavar region. “We are recording this as a political goal, that the aggressor must withdraw from territory of the Republic of Armenia,” he added.
Pashinyan described the convening of the September 13th CSTO meeting as satisfactory, stating that it was an honest and open discussion.
“I think that in terms of assessing the situation the minimum required decisions for this phase have been made,” he stated.
Voicing the position of Armenia, the PM added: “There is a border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, that border is recognized, and the recognition of that border is ratified by the two countries. If Azerbaijan is saying that there is no such thing then in the general context a number of positions expressed by them are totally senseless and ungrounded.”
This most recent escalation could pose a risk of spiraling into a larger conflict, as seen in late 2020.
