The UN General Assembly cited reports of “gross and systematic violations and abuses of human rights” in Ukraine on Thursday when it made the decision by 93 votes to 24, with 58 abstentions. Armenia and more than a dozen other nations did not vote at all.
Armenia was the only member of the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) that did not openly oppose the decision.
Russia's deputy UN Ambassador Gennady Kuzmin described the General Assembly’s move as an "illegitimate and politically motivated step" before announcing that Russia has decided to quit the Human Rights Council altogether.
According to the Reuters news agency, Russia had warned countries that a yes vote or abstention will be viewed as an “unfriendly gesture” with consequences for bilateral ties.
The Armenian government on Friday refrained from commenting on its ambiguous position on the suspension of Russia’s membership in the UN body.
By contrast, opposition lawmakers criticized Yerevan’s failure to side with Moscow. One of them, Aram Vartevanian, argued that Russia is Armenia’s closest ally and the main guarantor of Nagorno-Karabakh’s security.
“As you know, we have reached a point where it is the Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh (Karabakh) that guarantee the security of Artsakh Armenians,” said Vartevanian. “So I don’t understand the reasons for Armenia’s behavior.”
Last month Armenia abstained from voting on a UN General Assembly resolution that deplored “in the strongest terms” Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A few days earlier, it voted against the effective suspension of Russia’s membership in the Council of Europe.
Russia has long been Armenia’s main military and political ally. The South Caucasus state’s dependence on Moscow for defense and security deepened further following the 2020 war with Azerbaijan.