Armenian FM's statements confirm Armenia is party to Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
By Rashid Shirinov
The statement of the Armenian foreign minister at the meeting of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the statement of the Armenian Foreign Ministry on the situation on the frontline are contradictory, Spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmat Hajiyev told Trend on June 11.
He noted that on the one hand, the Armenian Foreign Ministry is trying to conceal Armenia’s responsibility as a party to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and on the other hand, with these statements confirms that Armenia is a party to the conflict.
“The logical question is: what are the servicemen of the Armenian armed forces doing in the sovereign territories of Azerbaijan? As a result of Armenia’s policy of occupation and territorial expansion against Azerbaijan, Armenian youth are forced to spend the most formative period of their lives in the trenches and serve the occupation policy,” Hajiyev stressed.
He added that the illegal presence of the Armenian forces in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is the main cause of incidents and provocations on the line of contact of the troops and is a serious threat to regional peace.
“To prevent such a situation, Armenia, in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions, must withdraw its troops from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and put an end to the policy of occupation. Only after that, it will be possible to ensure lasting peace and stability in the region,” the spokesman mentioned.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.
Until now, Armenia controls fifth part of Azerbaijan’s territory and rejects implementing four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding regions.
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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov
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