ArmInfo. Armenia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on the Argument the Azerbaijani side put forward at a meeting with foreign diplomats on September 18.
Armenia's foreign office states that the arguments are similar to diplomatic preparations for a new military escalation in the region and ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh.
"The speech of Azerbaijani officials during a meeting with foreign diplomats accredited in Azerbaijan is aimed at ordering the international community to be a "correspondent" in the implementation of the policy of ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh and aggression against Armenia, which is unacceptable.
During the above-mentioned meeting, representatives of Azerbaijan stated that the Republic of Armenia rejects all proposals aimed at reducing tensions. It is unclear what proposals Azerbaijan is talking about, and the report on the meeting with foreign diplomats does not clarify this issue. We consider it necessary to note that the proposal for a mirror withdrawal of troops from the Armenia-Azerbaijan state border remains in force and the Republic of Armenia is ready to begin discussing its implementation the day before," noted the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
The Armenian Foreign Ministry also called Baku's claims that the Republic of Armenia allegedly created a regime on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh groundless.
The support of the Republic of Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh is of a humanitarian nature, the need for which is even more expressed against the backdrop of the humanitarian crisis unfolding as a result of the illegal blockade of the Kashatagh (Lachin) corridor. The Republic of Armenia welcomes the arrival of the first humanitarian supplies to Nagorno-Karabakh after a long break and hopes that this process will be continuous and stable," they added in Yerevan.
At the same time, the Armenian Foreign Ministry considered it necessary to emphasize that the 9-month blockage of the Kashatagh corridor is a gross violation of the tripartite declaration of November 9, 2020 and legally binding decisions of the International Court of Justice of February 22 and 6 July of this year.
There would be no statements from Armenia, international partners and even Azerbaijan about their readiness to provide humanitarian support to Nagorno-Karabakh if Baku, through its illegal actions, had not created a humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh and had not prevented the entry of UN structures and other international partners into Artsakh. Along with blocking the Kashatagh corridor, Azerbaijan has disrupted gas and electricity supplies to Nagorno-Karabakh, which makes it obvious that Azerbaijani talk about blocking the corridor is a lie. If Azerbaijan explains the illegal blocking of the corridor with false news about the transportation of weapons and ammunition through the corridor to Nagorno-Karabakh, then it is not clear what else can be transported along power lines besides electricity, and what else can be transported through a gas pipeline besides natural gas. Regarding Azerbaijan's claims regarding the presence of the Armenian army in Nagorno-Karabakh, we once again emphasize that the Republic of Armenia does not have an army in Artsakh, and Baku's false claims about the installation of mines on Azerbaijani territory were refuted by the decision of the International Court of Justice on February 22.
The RA MFA once again considered it necessary to emphasize that the Republic of Armenia confirms its commitment to the peace agenda, as well as to the agreements reached in Prague on October 6, 2022 and in Brussels on May 14, 2023.
"We note with concern that official Baku has not yet publicly confirmed its commitment, in particular, to the Brussels Agreements of May 14, 2023, which in turn is a key factor of tension in the region.
Azerbaijan's views on the development of Armenia's military capabilities are also unclear. The Republic of Armenia has repeatedly stated that it does not intend to take aggressive actions against its neighbors, and reforms in the military sphere are aimed at ensuring its own territorial security.
As for the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh, we see the Baku-Stepanakert dialogue as a way to ease tensions and hope that our international partners, interested in the stability of the region, will take additional measures to create reliable mechanisms for such a dialogue," the RA Foreign Ministry summed up.
As ArmInfo previously reported, on September 18, Azerbaijan made another batch of demands on Armenia and Artsakh, including the abolition of the NKR Defense Army, dissatisfaction with the development of the RA Armed Forces, the demand to liquidate state institutions of Artsakh, etc.