YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 17, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian authorities expect that Russia, as a strategic partner, will help resolve the issues pertaining to the situation which was created at the border as a result of Azerbaijan’s actions, the Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan told Kommersant newspaper in an interview when asked what specific assistance Yerevan expects from Moscow as part of the 1997 treaty.

Grigoryan, who is in Moscow for the CIS Secretaries of Security Council meeting, noted that now the Azerbaijani armed forces are located on sovereign Armenian territory. “This is an act of aggression. In 1997 Armenia and Russia agreed to help one another in such cases. This is exactly why we applied to Russia,” he said.

Asked if Armenia expects military or diplomatic assistance, Grigoryan elaborated: “We are in favor of a diplomatic solution to the issue. But if this won’t be possible to do diplomatically, then the issue must be resolved militarily.”

Grigoryan said that in this matter Armenia prioritizes Russia and the CSTO. “But if a solution isn’t found we will start considering other opportunities too,” he said.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan