Armenian PM Won't Attend CIS Summit, Move Seen As Snub Of Putin

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian will not participate in a summit of the Council of the Leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), which is scheduled to take place in the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, on October 13. The Kyrgyz presidential office said on October 10 that Pashinian informed Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov he was "unable to attend the gathering" during a phone call. The absence highlights a growing rift between Yerevan and Moscow, as Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the summit. Earlier Armenia announced that its troops are not taking part in the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty's ongoing military maneuvers in Kyrgyzstan.