Armenia to leave Russia-led security bloc, says PM

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan speaks during a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council at the summit of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in Moscow, Russia, May 8, 2024. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool/File Photo

(Reuters) - Armenia will leave a Russia-led security bloc, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan confirmed on Wednesday for the first time, accusing members of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation of having planned a war against his country with Azerbaijan.

Pashinyan, who has tried to cultivate closer ties with the United States and European Union, said in March that Armenia, traditionally a close Russian ally, would leave the CSTO unless the security bloc detailed its commitment to uphold his country's security in a satisfactory way.