Russias Foreign Ministry said Monday that it rejects Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyans accusation that his country was abandoned by Moscow after Azerbaijan last week launched a military operation in the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.Pashinyan on Sundayblasted the Russian-Armenian strategic partnership as insufficient, signaling a major foreign policy shift away from its traditional ally.He spoke days after Armenias rival Azerbaijan claimed full control over Nagorno-Karabakh after a lightning offensive.Pashinyans address contains unacceptable attacks on Russia and causes nothing but rejection, Russias Foreign Ministry said in a statement.Yerevans leadership is making a huge mistake by deliberately trying to destroy Armenias multifaceted and centuries-old ties with Russia, it added, characterizing Pashinyan as short-sighted and inconsistent.Moscow also accused Pashinyan of systemically undermining Russian-Armenian ties, claiming that Yerevan risks becoming a hostage of the Wests geopolitical games.Armenia is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Russia-led group of six former-Soviet republics that pledges to protect other members under attack.But Moscow refused to come to Armenias aid amid Baku's most recent attacks, arguing that Yerevan had itself recognized Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan following a ceasefire in the 2020 war.Armenia hosts a Russian military base in its second-largest city of Gyumri, while Russian peacekeepers were deployed in the region after the 44-day war in 2020.The Kremlinsaid earlier Monday that it was unclear how long Russian peacekeepers would remain in Nagorno-Karabakh after Azerbaijans victory.[Russian peacekeepers] are on Azerbaijans territory..
contributing to the establishment of dialogue between the Armenian community of Nagorno-Karabakh and the Azerbaijani authorities, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.