Head of Armenian MFA: Issue of  Yury Khachaturov is strictly domestic  political one

ArmInfo. The issue of recalling CSTO Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov should be considered in a wider context, given the likelihood of similar problems recurring in  the future, Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan told  reporters on October 18.  

According to him, consultations on the issue of changing the CSTO Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov are continuing. "We need to consider this issue in a wider context, since such situations, for various reasons, can be repeated in the future,  and the Charter of the Organization should be ready to regulate such  problems," said Mnatsakanyan.

Answering the question of how correctly from a diplomatic point of  view it was to initiate a criminal case against the CSTO Secretary  General, Mnatsakanyan said that the issue with Khachaturov is  strictly domestic political one. "Armenia, for its part, has done  everything so that the internal political process does not influence  the organization and the authority of the CSTO is as important for us  as it is for other member countries," he said.

To recall, CSTO Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov is accused of  overthrowing the constitutional order in the so-called "March 1, 2008  case." At that time he held the post of the head of the Yerevan  garrison. By a court decision of July 28, he was arrested and then  released on bail in the amount of 5 million drams. The second  Armenian President Robert Kocharyan is alos accused within the same  case, as well as the former head of the Ministry of Defense of  Armenia Mikael Harutyunyan who is on the wanted list. On August 2,  the Special Investigative Service stated that the measure of  restraint chosen against Yuri Khachaturov is not an obstacle for him  to leave Armenia for some time. At the same time, the SIS did not  detail the permissible period of his absence.

Official Yerevan proposed CSTO counterparts to consider the  possibility of replacing the CSTO Secretary General from Armenia in  connection with the criminal prosecution of Yuri Khachaturov.