Friday, December 9 2022 16:54

ArmInfo. Lachin was handed over to the Azerbaijani side, and therefore it makes no sense to qualify the new route linking Artsakh with Armenia as the Lachin  corridor.  Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Artsakh Arman  Melikyan, commenting on a recent incident involving a group of  Azerbaijanis blocking a road linking the two Armenian republics,  stated in conversation with ArmInfo correspondent..

On the afternoon of December 3, a kilometer-long traffic jam formed  on the section of the road connecting Artsakh with Armenia controlled  by the Russian peacekeeping contingent.  The government of the  republic announced that "a group of Azerbaijanis in civilian clothes  blocked the road under the pretext of environmental safety" and  described this action of the Azerbaijanis as a provocation. In turn,  the Azerbaijani side reported that it sent specialists to monitor the  environmental situation in the region, and the road was blocked by  Russian peacekeepers. Negotiations with "environmentalists" were  taken over by the commander of the Russian peacekeeping contingent,  General Andrei Volkov. Three hours after the incident, the road was  opened.

Meanwhile, according to Melikyan, the road that operates today is not  the Lachin corridor, it is just a road under the control of Russian  peacekeeping forces, the status of which, unlike the Lachin corridor,  has not yet been clarified. It passes through two villages of  Artsakh. How can this road be called today, the former minister found  it difficult to answe.r  , Melikyan noted.  From this point of  view, according to the former minister, the Armenian side should put  into circulation an adequate designation of the new route - as a  transport infrastructure that, in addition to communication, also  provides political and humanitarian functionality inherent in the  concept of "humanitarian corridor". "We must seriously work in this  direction, and, first of all, Artsakh must deal with this so that the  status of the road is finally determined. Armenia should also be  involved in solving the problem," Melikyan stressed, adding that  Azerbaijan, by its actions, drew attention to this problem. The road  was closed in the Shushi region, which is evidence that the Armenian  side should have timely taken care of the construction of a road  bypassing this city, which was not done. As a result, Melikyan  continued, the problem of Shushi will now be constantly merged with  another problem, the problem of the Lachin corridor.

As for the Russian peacekeepers, as the former minister noted, their  allowances are fully provided through the territory of Armenia, and  not Azerbaijan.  They even need to have a special permit from Baku to  enter Shushi.  Russian peacekeepers move freely through the  Armenian-populated territories, but cannot move freely through the  territories under the control of the Azerbaijani armed forces. "Each  aggravation of the situation has a specific resolution, which is  agreed with the command in Moscow," the expert said, adding that the  actions of the Azerbaijani side are understandable - to create as  many difficulties as possible for the Armenians of Artsakh.

 

He added that the statement of November 9, 2020 and subsequent  documents did not provide for any sanctions if one or another side  violates the agreements reached. < This document has no any legal  value.  Each of the parties can do what they want, and nothing will  follow>, the expert noted.  Melikyan noted that Baku is constantly  trying to discredit the actions of Russian peacekeepers, which helps  the President of Azerbaijan to keep his rating at a high level. "They  directly say that at any moment they can kick out the Russians, as  they call it, "from their territories." For the Russians, this  situation, by and large, is not catastrophic, since the threat to  Artsakh allows them to increase their presence in the region>, the  former Foreign Minister of Artsakh noted.