Emmanuel Macron’s latest move could spell danger for the Western world because it could spark a ‘very dangerous’ retaliation from Russia. In a move aimed at strengthening defence ties between France and Armenia, French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu met with his Armenian counterpart, Suren Papikyan, in the Armenian capital last month.
The meeting included the delivery of night vision goggles to Armenia and the signing of a contract for assault rifles from the French company PGM.
Additionally, discussions are underway for the purchase of short-range Mistral missiles from the European contractor MBDA.
This burgeoning alliance follows Armenia’s suspension of its membership in the Moscow-dominated Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) military alliance. The decision came in the wake of perceived betrayal by Russia during Azerbaijan’s offensive to retake the breakaway Armenian-inhabited region of Nagorno-Karabakh in September.
Armenia also distanced itself from Russia by not supporting Moscow’s actions in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Azerbaijani Ambassador to the UK, Elin Suleymanov, expressed concerns over the escalating situation, telling Express.co.uk: “In terms of Russia, I think two things. One is that Russians have been quite vocal in criticising Armenian statements.
“The latest Russian foreign minister’s statement was very strong about in terms of Armenia. Very critical.”
He further highlighted the physical dangers posed by the saturation of border areas in Armenia with both European and Russian troops, potentially leading to a precarious situation.
Suleymanov emphasised the importance of preventing any escalation. He said: “I do hope it doesn’t translate into anything more significant than just verbal exchanges because we want to see peace; we don’t want interruption or disruption of it. At the end of the day, who are they [Armenia] going to make a peace with? The French? The Russians? Who? Us. We’re the counterparts in this.”
Regarding the cooperation between France and Armenia on weaponry, the Ambassador expressed deep concerns, adding: “This is very dangerous. Russians might say ‘you know what? We don’t want French arms in Armenia’.
“And by the way, there’s always an arms embargo on Armenia and Azerbaijan, so I don’t know how they do that and how you sell NATO arms to a country which is a former member of the Russian military.”
Responding to the accusations, the Armenian Embassy in London claimed that their relationship with France is not aimed against any third country.
They defended their right to cooperate defensively with any nation, emphasising Armenia’s policy of security diversification.
The embassy called Azerbaijan’s concerns about Armenia purchasing defensive equipment from France “ludicrous”, pointing out Azerbaijan’s receipt of large weapon shipments from extra-regional countries on a weekly basis. The situation remains delicate, with the potential for geopolitical tensions to escalate further.
They told Express.co.uk: “Our relationship with France is not aimed against any third country.
“As a sovereign state Armenia maintains the right to cooperate defensively with any nation, which is in line with Armenia’s policy of diversification of its security.
“It is ludicrous for Azerbaijan to concern itself with Armenia purchasing defensive equipment from France when it receives large shipments of weapons from extra-regional countries on a weekly basis.”
They added: “Azerbaijan regularly tries to misrepresent the essence of Armenian-Russian relations. Conversely, Armenia has stated at the highest levels the reasons for its dissatisfaction based on the latter’s track record in recent years, and I have nothing to add to that.
“Azerbaijan should instead reflect upon its own relations with Russia which have been raised to the level of strategic alliance 1 in an agreement before chattering about how Armenia and Russia see the future of their relations.”
