Leaders of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) discussed "urgent problems of international and regional security" at a summit in Minsk on November 23 that was notable for the absence of a representative from member-state Armenia.
Belarusian Foreign Minister Syarhey Aleynyk acknowledged before the leaders of Belarus, Russia, Kygyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan gathered for the summit that Armenia's absence meant the lack of a quorum, but he told journalists that all the decisions approved would be "absolutely legitimate."
Aleynyk said he had discussed "issues and mechanisms for approving decisions" with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in a phone call. The Belarusian minister said that according to the CSTO rules, all decisions are made in consultation with all countries.
"We agreed that after the summit, the secretary-general of the CSTO will visit Yerevan. And, of course, we will pass all the decisions that were finalized here as part of the conciliation commission to our Armenian partners. And we will count on them to join us," Aleynyk said.
The summit was hosted by authoritarian Belarusian leader Alyaksandr Lukashenka and attended by Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Kremlin said it "regretted" Armenia's decision to skip the summit amid concerns that Yerevan could pull out of the alliance.
"We hope that Armenia does not change the vector of its foreign policy and remains our ally.... We will continue to talk to them," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state TV.
Pashinian last year criticized the CSTO for its refusal to support Armenia when it faced "Azerbaijani aggression," saying this had been damaging to the CSTO's image in Armenia and abroad.
Lukashenka said the situation in the Caucasus "and some dissatisfaction of one of the members" of the CSTO had been discussed.
"We will not hide the fact that we also discussed the situation in the Caucasus and the certain dissatisfaction of one of the CSTO members," Lukashenka said. "We have come to the joint conclusion that there have always been problems, there are and there will be problems. But if we are to solve these problems, we should do it at the negotiation table and not through unreasonable demarches.”
At the same time he expressed hope that "we will see our Armenian friends" in St. Petersburg at an economic forum.
Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Mnatsakan Safarian told reporters in Yerevan earlier on November 23 that Armenia was not considering quitting Russian-led alliances, including the CSTO.
SEE ALSO: Armenia Says No Intention Of Quitting Russian-Led CSTO Despite Summit SnubAn official statement from the Belarusian president's office said the summit discussed "current problems of international and regional security, definition of new tasks, as well as approval of a number of documents aimed at ensuring the interests of collective security."
Among the decisions made at the summit was the approval of Russian Colonel General Andrei Serdyukov to the post of the head of the Joint Staff of the CSTO. A decision was also made on the allocation of quota positions in the CSTO for the next three years.
It also was decided that the chairmanship of the CSTO will pass from Belarus to Kazakhstan from January 1, 2024.
Additionally, the leaders signed documents on measures to develop the CSTO crisis-response system and approved a new provision on the order of response of the CSTO to crisis situations and on the order of adoption and implementation of collective decisions on the use of forces.
They also approved a regulation on the joint press center of the CSTO and discussed issues related to the strengthening and development of CSTO military cooperation and the organization's budget.