Wednesday, February 14 2024 11:08

ArmInfo.Azerbaijan's military operation on the border is an attempt to put pressure on  Armenia, the Vice-Chairman of the State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Konstantin Zatulin, told Lenta.ru as he commented on the latest escalation between Armenia and Azerbaijan. 

Earlier, Azerbaijan attacked a post of the Armed Forces (AF) of  Armenia in the area of the settlement of Nerkin Khanda, Syunik  region. The military operation was called an "operation of  retaliation." The attack was allegedly preceded by shelling of  Azerbaijani military personnel from Armenia.

According to the deputy, the new episode of the confrontation once  again increases tension in relations between countries that are  traditionally considered hostile.

"It is difficult for me to judge who is right and who is wrong from  the point of view of who started first, as they say before a fight in  the yard, but whoever started first, it is obvious that Azerbaijan  made this a reason for a demonstration of force and revenge and today  is disseminating this information as another victory in the  confrontation with Armenia. Of course, this rhetoric is clearly not  aimed at reaching agreements; most likely, it is an attempt to put  pressure," Zatulin believes. "It is difficult for me to judge who is  right and who is wrong from the point of view of who started first,  as they say before a fight in the yard, but whoever started first, it  is obvious that Azerbaijan made this a reason for a demonstration of  force and revenge and today is disseminating this information as  another victory in the confrontation with Armenia. Of course, this  rhetoric is clearly not aimed at reaching agreements; most likely, it  is an attempt to put pressure," Zatulin believes.

According to him, Azerbaijan is interested in Armenia conceding as  much as possible when signing any agreement. He added that Baku had  taken a pause to hold presidential elections, during which  Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev added fire to the fire by voting in  Stepanakert, which locals call Khankendi and where there is no  Armenian population left.

"I have nothing against the elections in Azerbaijan, this is their  internal matter, but these elections were heavily fermented by the  winner's syndrome, which was confirmed by Aliyev's vote in  Stepanakert. I think this is a reflection of the fact that,  apparently, it does not work out "at the moment there is an  atmosphere and specific conditions for signing a peace treaty,  recognition of territorial integrity and so on," the parliamentarian  added.

"The controversy around this continues, and a logical question that  arises not only in Armenia, but throughout the world, is that, in  fact, the government of [Armenian Prime Minister Nikola] Pashinyan,  which recognized Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan, refused all support  for its compatriots ", which swallowed mass exoduses from Karabakh  and, in addition, aggravated relations with Russia, what has it  acquired along the way, if there is no new wonderful world, but there  are such clashes as yesterday and today? Apparently, we are very far  from the real world in Transcaucasia."

"One-sided victories, such as those achieved by Azerbaijan and Turkey  over Karabakh, do not lead to immediate peace, but lay the seeds for  new conflicts and episodes of confrontation," Zarulin said.