Russian Foreign Ministry official Maria Zakharova has commented on Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statement about the European Union's monitoring mission on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. 

When asked about the statement during a briefing by political reporter Aik Khaltayan, Zakharova said, "If this statement is an attempt to justify the EU's involvement in the region, it is unlikely to be successful. Peace in the Nagorno-Karabakh region and the Armenian-Azerbaijani border is maintained by Russian peacekeepers." 

Zakharova went on to say that Brussels is attempting to change the region's security system, where the cornerstone is the presence of Russian troops and Armenia's membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization. "We hope that Yerevan understands and takes this into account," she added. 

The Russian Foreign Ministry official also noted that Moscow welcomes dialogue between Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia without the involvement of any Western states. She stated that such dialogue without Western influence will strengthen stability and security in the South Caucasus and resolve conflicts. 
To recall, Nikol Pashinyan said that there is no hidden geopolitical meaning in the fact that the Armenian authorities prefer the European Union observers to the CSTO in the country. 

According to Pashinyan, the main reason is that, unlike the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the EU has clearly defined the territory of the Republic of Armenia. "We asked the CSTO to clarify the fundamental issue for us: the area of responsibility in Armenia. In other words, tell us what the borders of the Republic of Armenia are. We could not get the exact answer to this question. On the other hand, it was possible to send an EU mission because the EU delineated the territory of Armenia at the quadrilateral meeting in Prague. This happened with the participation and consent of Armenia and Azerbaijan. That is, they said that this was how they saw the map of the Republic of Armenia, and it [the mission] was approved with that in mind," Pashinyan said.

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