French Ambassador:  Neither Russia nor CSTO came to aid of Armenia  when it needed it

ArmInfo.The purpose of the meeting of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, US Secretary of  State Antony Blinken and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen on April 5 in Brussels is to provide support to Armenia and unite the efforts of the EU and the US on this issue. Ambassador  of France to Armenia, Olivier Decottignies, stated in an interview with the Public Television of Armenia.

The diplomat recalled that European Commission President Ursula von  der Leyen spoke about the possibility of organizing such a meeting  back in October last year in Bordeaux, and then it was discussed at  the summit in Granada.  "The purpose of this meeting is also to  remind the decisions that were made at a time when Armenia was faced  with a flow of over 100,000 forcibly deported refugees from  Nagorno-Karabakh, and when problems with accepting refugees continue  to be significant for the country," the diplomat noted.

When asked what kind of assistance the ambassador meant, Mr  Decottignies noted that the meeting is organized by the United States  and the European Commission, in which the EU member states, like  France, do not participate directly.

"I believe that security issues will not be discussed at the meeting.  Regarding security issues, France takes responsibility towards  Armenia. In recent months, we have begun cooperation with Armenia in  the field of defense, which is developing. The head of the Armenian  Ministry of Defense visited Paris, the head of the Armed Forces of  France, in turn, visited Yerevan, during the visits we witnessed  certain concrete results in the field of provision of equipment and  retraining of personnel, which are already underway in the interests  of the Armenian army," he said.

Responding to remarks that Azerbaijan and Russia are already  criticizing the upcoming April 5 meeting, the French ambassador  expressed bewilderment at how aid to a country facing a humanitarian  crisis and facing territorial threats could harm territorial  security.

"I don't understand this kind of concern. How assistance to Armenia  can be directed against Russia, I don't understand this logic," the  ambassador asked.

To the presenter's observation that Russia claims that the West is  trying to push Moscow out of the South Caucasus with the help of  Armenia, and this meeting is also being organized with this  intention, Mr Decottignies noted that, according to his observations,  in recent years, when Yerevan needed help, Moscow was not in the  right place. According to him, the West has come to help and is  helping through various means and organizations, which can only be  evaluated positively.  In response to the presenter's remark that  Moscow assures that increasing Western involvement in the region's  affairs will only increase tensions, the French diplomat once again  drew attention to the fact that neither Russia nor the CSTO came to  the aid of Armenia when it needed it.  He also added that the  peacekeepers of Russia, which acted as the guarantor of the ceasefire  in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone, did not take any action when  Azerbaijan initiated aggression against Artsakh in September 2023.

"They withdrew their forces from the barracks only to disarm the  Artsakh authorities, after signing the ceasefire document. Thus, if  anyone does not contribute to the security of Armenia, it is Russia,"  he assured.

At the same time, Mr  Decottignies responded with irony to the  accusations of spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria  Zakharova, that 'all responsibility for the exodus of the population  of Artsakh lies with the EU and NATO, which forced Armenia to  recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan, and did not even  say a word about the rights and safety of the Artsakh people': "This  is the first time that Russia 'obeys the will' of the of Europe or  the West. It's surprising; if Zakharova said so, let her also say the  following: Russia was the guarantor of the ceasefire regime, and when  this regime was violated by the Azerbaijani side, the Russians did  not fulfill their obligations as a guarantor to ensure this peace. It  was the Russians who were supposed to ensure this peace. As for the  refugees, they left Artsakh after a 9-month blockade and a brutal  attack," the diplomat recalled. According to him, it was not the  Europeans who organized this blockade either did the Europeans carry  out this brutal attack.

To clarify whether there really is a consensus between the West and  Iran on the issue of the territorial integrity of Armenia, Mr   Decottignies recalled that he spoke about the presence of many  disagreements between Paris and Tehran, but there is also unity,  which lies in common concerns regarding the sovereignty and  territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia. He added that Iran  has repeatedly confirmed its support for the territorial integrity of  Armenia and expressed concern about the ongoing processes. "However  this concern should be shared by other UN countries as well, since  this is spelled out in the UN Charter," the diplomat expressed his  conviction.

At the same time, the French diplomat did not give a direct answer to  the question of what the West will do in the event of Azerbaijani  aggression against Armenia, and whether it would limit itself to  statements of concern. The Ambassador recalled that the The West  unites quite a large number of states, and he represents France, not  the collective West. "As for France, it is ready, within its  capabilities, to assist Armenia in protecting its own civilian  population, sovereignty and territorial integrity. In other words, do  not wait for a new military episode to provide assistance to  Armenia," he said, recalling the ongoing interaction between two  countries in the defense sector.  In this vein, the Ambassador added  that France is the first NATO country to begin supplying equipment to  Armenia, a CSTO member country. "Cooperation also includes the  retraining of military personnel and the assistance of French  training instructors in Armenia and France," the French Ambassador  said.  Regarding the claims about the quality of arms supplied by  France to Armenia, Mr Decottignies expressed the conviction that if  the supplied French weapons did not have a combat purpose, Azerbaijan  would not make claims every time.

"This weapon has a defensive purpose and has proven itself in the  market and does not require additional quality confirmation," the  diplomat concluded.