Zakharova: The West absolutely does not care about the fate of the  South Caucasus

ArmInfo. It is difficult to overstate the significance of the trilateral statement made by the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia of November 9, 2020. Russia, and President Vladimir Putin personally, made significant  efforts to reach agreements that halted the bloody war.

This was stated on November 13 during a weekly briefing by the official  representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova, in  response to a request to assess the Statement of the Presidents of  Russia and Azerbaijan and the Prime Minister of Armenia on November  9, 2020. The Statement, adopted 4 years ago, allowed for the  cessation of hostilities in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone and  laid the foundation for the process of normalizing relations between  Armenia and Azerbaijan.

 "Just two months later, in January 2021, a summit was held at the  suggestion of the Russian President, with the participation of the  leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan, to initiate the peace process. A  trilateral working group was also established under the  co-chairmanship of the Deputy Prime Ministers of Armenia, Azerbaijan  and Russia to unblock all economic and transport links in the South  Caucasus. Subsequently, a comprehensive set of trilateral agreements  was formed on the basis of the statement of November 9, 2020  outlining the main directions of Armenian-Azerbaijani normalization.  These include the development of a peace treaty, the lifting of  mutual transport blockades, border delimitation and demarcation, and  fostering contacts through civil society," Zakharova mentioned. 

At the same time, she assured that by actively working on a  trilateral basis at the Russian negotiating platform, it was possible  to achieve tangible and significant results on a wide range of  issues. As evidence of this, the Russian diplomat noted that in June  2023, the parties were close to effectively restoring transport  routes in the region. However, under pressure from the West, Yerevan  froze its participation in the group, and subsequently in all  trilateral formats. "Let's be frank and simply admit that the United  States and the European Union who attempted to take on the role of  mediator, were unable to come up with any original ideas. They simply  copied our proposals, but in doing so distorted the essence of them  in the hope of disrupting the peace process. At the same time, the  true goal is obvious - they want to gain control of the region, push  out Russia, and also Iran and Turkey, creating another hotbed of  tension," the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry said. 

At the same time, Zakharova emphasized that the West absolutely does  not care about the fate of the South Caucasus, its people and their  destinies. "They have their own ambitions. Unlike the Westerners, we  are interested in a safe, stable, and prosperous South Caucasus. We  have a presence there, with our natural, historical, economic, and  humanitarian interests in the region. We are ready to develop this  area, not only because it is in our interests, but also because it is  a guarantee of stability and security in this part of the world," the  Russian diplomat said. According to Zakharova, the Russian side is  ready to continue to providing comprehensive assistance to its  Azerbaijani and Armenian partners to achieve sustainable peace based  on the trilateral agreements among the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan,  and Armenia.