Acting Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan said on Tuesday, November 6 that Armenia will continue presiding over the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) by 2020, Aysor.am reports.

His comments came amid speculations that the CSTO is discussing the appointment of Secretary General of the Security Council of Belarus Stanislav Zas as the organization's new Secretary General.

Days earlier, the CSTO Collective Security Council relieved Armenia’s Yuri Khachaturov of his duties as the organization’s secretary general. The move had been initiated by Yerevan.

On July 26, Armenia’s Special Investigative Service accused Khachaturov of overthrowing the constitutional order in 2008 and requested his arrest. Khachaturov, who was the Commander of the Armenian Armed Forces’ Yerevan Garrison back in 2008, pleaded not guilty. On July 28, the Yerevan City Court of General Jurisdiction released him on his own recognizance and a bail of about $10,000.

Asked about some media publications, Tonoyan also failed to comment on the possibility of the appointment of former Armenian Defense Minister Vagharshak Harutyunyan as the new head of the organization.

The acting Defense Minister instead urged journalists to wait several days for clarifications.