Requesting CSTO Support for 5 Shots Indicates Our Army is Not Combat Ready: Marukyan

I do not think that under the conditions of a few shots fired at Armenia, we should appeal to the CSTO, asking them to protect us. This would mean that the Armenian army is not sufficiently combat-ready, said Edmon Marukyan, head of the ‘Bright Armenia’ parliamentary faction, in an interview with reporters.

“We need to be strong enough, and today we must be capable of responding with 500 shots to 5 shots. That’s how it works, that’s how it should be done. The CSTO agreement can be activated when there is a large-scale war and we officially appeal,” he said.

When asked whether the Azerbaijani side's shots are of a periodic nature, Marukyan replied that this is not new; the Armenian side responds appropriately to such actions.

“The question is whether we want to seek CSTO assistance and become bound by obligations regarding the future. I would not want us to appeal to that structure for support,” noted the MP.