YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. The violations by Azerbaijan of the statements and agreements reached in trilateral and other formats have a chronic nature, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in a statement during today’s Cabinet meeting.
“In December 2020, Azerbaijan has illegally occupied Nagorno Karabakh’s Khtsaberd and Hin Tagher settlements and adjacent territories contrary to the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, according to which a complete ceasefire is being established and all hostilities are being stopped in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone, and that the parties remain at their current positions”, the PM stated.
Pashinyan reminded that Azerbaijan made a similar occupation also in March 2022, by invading the responsibility zone of the Russian peacekeeping forces in Nagorno Karabakh and violating the Line of Contact set by the 2020 November 9 trilateral statement, and now the President of Azerbaijan is proudly calling it as “Operation Parukh”. “Azerbaijan is violating the ceasefire almost on a daily regime also in the Line of Contact established by the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, simultaneously announcing that Nagorno Karabakh does not exist. This claim itself is a gross violation of the 2020 November 9 trilateral statement. The name “Nagorno Karabakh” is mentioned 4 times in that famous statement, which was also signed by Azerbaijan”, Nikol Pashinyan said.
He stated that Azerbaijan has not yet taken steps to start a visible dialogue with the representatives of Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh for the international community, over which it assumed a commitment in a number of international platforms. “At the same time, it is trying to present itself constructive and announces that Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh are “its citizens and their rights and security are guaranteed”. To what extent this claim is in accordance with the reality, it can be proved in practice by checking what conditions Azerbaijan has created and what steps it has taken for the safe return of thousands of residents of Hadrut and other Armenian-populated territories of Nagorno Karabakh, who were displaced as a result of the 44-day war of 2020. Azerbaijan has not taken any step on this path, which is a gross violation of point 7th of the 2020 November 9 trilateral statement. With the violation of that same point Azerbaijan is obstructing the entry of the UN representatives, particularly that of the Office of High Commissioner for Refugees to Nagorno Karabakh”, the PM said.
According to Pashinyan, these and a number of other similar actions and statements make it obvious that Aliyev not only threatens, but also is already preparing genocide of Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh. He stated that this intention is also expressed in the comments of the Azerbaijani President over the terms of the deployment of Russian peacekeeping contingent in Nagorno Karabakh, which in their turn are grossly violating at least the three of the statements adopted in a trilateral format.
“The trilateral statement of November 9, 2020 says the peacekeepers are being deployed in Nagorno Karabakh for a 5-year term, with automatic extension for the next 5-year periods. I repeat, with automatic extension. This, in fact, means that the peacekeepers are deployed in Nagorno Karabakh indefinitely until all issues connected with the rights and security of Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh are addressed and all security concerns of Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh are resolved”, PM Pashinyan said.
He recalled that with the trilateral statements of 2021 November 26 and 2022 October 31, the President of Azerbaijan himself acknowledged the vital, important contribution of the peacekeepers to ensuring the security and stability of its deployment zone. Moreover, he acknowledged the demand for further efforts of the peacekeepers in the stability of the situation in the region. “After signing the two Sochi statements and making these records, developing a narrative of withdrawing the peacekeepers without clear international guarantees for ensuring the security and rights of Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh is not only a violation of the aforementioned trilateral statements, but also a preparation for the genocide of Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh”, Nikol Pashinyan stated.