ArmInfo. Armenia continues close consultations with the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in connection with the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and informs the allies about the situation "on the ground," Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said in an interview with RIA Novosti.
"Armenia continues close consultations both with the CSTO and separately with the CSTO member states and informs its allies about the situation" on the ground, "the minister said, answering the question about the need for the CSTO to participate in the settlement in Nagorno-Karabakh at this stage. The Minister stressed that Yerevan supports the deployment of observers in Nagorno-Karabakh. According to him, Yerevan has always supported the idea of constant monitoring of the ceasefire regime, which was proposed by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs after the escalation in April 2016. Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed to expand the monitoring group of the special representative of the OSCE chairing country and create a mechanism to investigate cases of ceasefire violations. "However, then Azerbaijan refused to fulfill these agreements. This once again shows that neither yesterday, nor today Azerbaijan is interested in a stable and verifiable ceasefire. And our point of view has not changed, and we support the deployment of observers," Mnatsakanyan said.
He added that Baku refuses to work constructively towards ceasefire in Karabakh and continues military operations. As the minister reminded, on October 10 the foreign ministers of the Russian Federation, Armenia and Azerbaijan adopted a joint statement in Moscow, the points of which are a "road map". He noted that the first three points, which relate to the ceasefire, the need to agree on its specific parameters, to exchange the bodies of the dead and prisoners of war, must be fulfilled immediately and without preconditions. "The main obstacle in the negotiations was Azerbaijan's unwillingness to commit itself to a stable and verifiable ceasefire. Azerbaijan refuses to create verification mechanisms, its long-standing position is to avoid a stable ceasefire and leave room for mutual accusations," the Foreign Minister said RA.
"Now consultations are underway on verification mechanisms between the ministries of defense of the Russian Federation, Armenia and Azerbaijan. So far, Azerbaijan refuses to constructively participate in the development of the parameters of the ceasefire and continues large-scale military actions," the diplomat added.