ArmInfo. Azerbaijan's policy is aimed at disrupting the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan by all possible means. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan stated during a meeting with ember of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom Parliament Sir John Whittingdale.
He noted that this is evidenced by the aggressive rhetoric of official representatives of Azerbaijan, which is associated with open territorial ambitions towards Armenia. "It is obvious that the strategy of the Azerbaijani government is aimed at deepening hostility in our region, which is a very alarming fact," Pashinyan emphasized.
Expressing regret that Sir Whittingdale's visit coincided with a new escalation on the border with Azerbaijan, the Prime Minister said that as a result of another provocation, four Armenian soldiers were killed.
At the same time, he noted that despite everything that happened, Armenia is committed to the peace process, which, according to him, has no alternative. "Of course, we must do everything to achieve concrete results in the peace process, and we are doing this. But, unfortunately, it is impossible to do so without the political will of the other side. And today's incident, which took the lives of four soldiers, testifies not only to Azerbaijan's lack of political will for peace, but also to its intention to deepen enmity and start a military escalation," the Prime Minister noted.
At the same time, he recalled that a day earlier, information was published in the Azerbaijani media, which stated that an Armenian guard at the site of today's incident opened fire in the direction of Azerbaijani positions. Immediately after this, the Armenian Military Police stated that based on this information, an investigation had been launched, since the RA Ministry of Defense had a very strict order not to provoke any escalation, not to succumb to provocations. "And this was a very clear message from Armenia, and the press release of the Military Police clearly stated that if this fact is confirmed, it will have legal consequences. But, despite this, early this morning Azerbaijan began local but large-scale shooting using UAVs," Pashinyan noted.
In turn, Sir John Whittingdale expressed condolences and support to the families of those killed as a result of Azerbaijan's military aggression and to the Armenian people. At the same time, he expressed concern about military actions and emphasized the need to take steps aimed at strengthening peace and stability.