“The accusation that Russia allegedly did not support Armenia enough is absolutely baseless. Russia has never abandoned its commitments as part of the Collective Security Treaty Organization. Had anyone attacked Armenia, Russia would do everything to protect its ally,” Peskov said.
The spokesman for the Russian president said it was unfair of some circles in Armenian society to say that “Russia has betrayed Armenia.”
Russia, Peskov stressed, simply did not have the right to send troops to Nagorno-Karabakh.
“We did it only after it was approved by the parties to the conflict. Otherwise Russia would not have been able to do so under international law,” Peskov said.
Six weeks of Armenian-Azerbaijani hostilities in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone ended on November 10 in a trilateral statement brokered by Russia that put an end to military operations mostly on Baku’s terms.
The agreement also envisages the deployment of nearly 2,000 Russian peacekeepers to ensure the security of the ethnic Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh.
The deal that was negotiated in the wake of a series of military defeats by ethnic Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh sparked protests in Armenia, with opposition parties branding it as an act of surrender and demanding Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s resignation.
Throughout the course of the armed conflict Russia, as one of the three chief international mediators along with the United States and France, showed neutrality concerning the hostilities taking place within what internationally are recognized as Azerbaijan’s borders.
On October 31, Pashinian formally asked Russia, as its ally, to consider rendering military assistance to Armenia. Russia responded the same day by reaffirming its commitments to Yerevan “if military operations take place directly on the territory of Armenia.”