Let's talk about the "if only".
What does Pashinyan mean by saying: "We hope to expand not only security cooperation, but military-technical cooperation as well"? As we know, Armenia doesn't have the money to purchase any armaments. Moreover, all the previous forms of cooperation and integration have been insufficient for Russia to really wish to solve Armenia's problems.
The recent events prove that Armenia gains nothing from being a part of the CSTO or the CIS. From this point of view, Armenia's only solution is tighter integration with Russia so that the armed forces of Armenia and Russia are a single entity. This would be possible only if Armenia were to become Russia's subject, or if they decide to establish a union state.
In order to establish a union state, the position of Belarus must be taken into account. After the recent events, Lukashenko has most likely agreed with all of Putin's demands. Armenia's geographic location would benefit Moscow, and we know that if there's another country between two parts of Russia, it's only a matter of time until this country loses its independence. This, of course, doesn't concern countries that join NATO.
It's difficult to predict how Armenians would welcome such a turn of events. They would surely be happy to defeat Azerbaijan and regain Nagorno-Karabakh, but would they be happy if Armenia returned to the Kremlin's gentle embrace? One thing is certain - if this happens, Georgia and Azerbaijan must strengthen their armed forces and consider joining NATO.
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