ArmInfo.In the conditions of a long and existential confrontation between Russia and the West, as well as the Western pressure on the post-Soviet countries, integration bodies, including the CSTO, are under stress. mitry Suslov, Deputy Director:Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs / Centre for Comprehensive European and International Studies (CCEIS), expressed a similar opinion on February 4 at the round table "Armenia and the global confrontation between Russia and the West; Results of 2022", organized by the ACSSI Center
At the same time, the expert believes that the continuation of this protracted conflict will lead to the stagnation of the CSTO. "Not collapse, but a certain stagnation. The collapse of the CSTO is possible if Russia is defeated in the Ukrainian conflict, which again will entail a war of all against all in the post- Soviet space, a sharp escalation of many old conflicts and the beginning of new ones. A sharp activation of the destabilizing role of other regional players around the post-Soviet space," the expert believes.
At the same time, he is convinced that the collapse of the CSTO without the defeat of Russia is unlikely. "As well as I believe that we will be able to cope with the crisis in Russian-Armenian relations today. In my opinion, Armenia's withdrawal from the CSTO is also unlikely. None of the countries of Central Asia, and even more so Belarus today are not interested in the collapse of the CSTO," he said, adding that such a scenario is possible only if the Russian Federation loses the war.