ArmInfo. Introduction of investigative mechanisms is the best way to avoid fatalities during the incidents, Armenian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Tigran Balayan has told ArmInfo's correspondent, when commenting on Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's statement about the need to launch investigative mechanisms.
Balayan notes that Armenia has always campaigned for introduction of such mechanisms. "Introduction of investigative mechanisms is our principled stand and we have repeatedly stated that," he says.
To note, when speaking about the April 2016 events, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at yesterda's conference that the bloody events in April 2016 caused deep concerns. "Russia played a crucial role to stop the bloodshed at that time. After the escalation in April 2016, arrangements were reached at the Vienna and St. Petersburg summits, stressing the need to create an investigative mechanism and to increase the number of the OSCE observers on the line of contact. "The need to create an investigative mechanism was also stressed at the Astrakhan meeting of the presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia," Lavrov noted, adding that unfortunately this cannot be put in practice yet due to the lack of consensus in the OSCE. "The question about the lack of consensus can be given to the OSCE representatives," he said. Lavrov also stressed that the conflict over Karabakh is no longer anything abstract or domestic affair of Azerbaijan.
It is noteworthy that when responding to Lavrov's statement, Azeri Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov sidestepped the issue of the mechanisms.