Baku urges Yerevan not to aggravate situation with false statements
By Vafa Ismayilova
Baku has urged Yerevan not to aggravate the situation on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border with false statements and to hold constructive talks to resolve disagreements.
In a statement posted on its website on May 25, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said: "The information disseminated by Armenia that, on May 25, 2021, the Azerbaijani armed forces allegedly shelled the Armenian positions in Upper Shorzha settlement of Gegharkunik region on the Armenian-Azerbaijani state border from the territory of Kalbajar region is not true."
The Foreign Ministry stressed that the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry and the State Border Service said in their respective statements that the accusations were false and that the units of the Azerbaijani armed forces had not opened fire on the Armenian territory.
The ministry described Armenia's statement as another lie in an attempt to deliberately use the incident within its armed forces to aggravate the situation on the border.
"We call on Armenia not to aggravate the situation with false statements, and to hold constructive talks to resolve disagreements on this and other issues," the statement said.
The ministry said that the recent increase in the Armenian army casualties necessitates an appropriate investigation.
"In general, the recent increase in casualties among the Armenian armed forces, including non-military casualties, as well as the latest case necessitate appropriate investigations to be conducted within the armed forces of Armenia," the statement said.
It added that currently, the situation on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border is stable and under control.
Earlier, the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry and the State Border Service dismissed the Armenian statement as false.
"We unequivocally state that our units did not open an aimed fire on the enemy," the Defence Ministry said.
It added that on May 25, in the afternoon, seven trucks with military personnel of the Armenian armed forces tried to approach the above-mentioned area of the border.
"As a result of preventive measures taken by our units, the movement of the enemy was suppressed," the ministry said.
It noted that according to the information available to the ministry, the incident involving the death of an Armenian serviceman occurred as a result of an accident and it had nothing to do with Azerbaijan.
The ministry said that Azerbaijan is in constant contact with Russia over the situation.
The State Border Service said that Armenia's message to Russia's representatives that "the incident occurred as a result of shelling from Azerbaijan, as well as everything, that is written about it in the Armenian media, is completely absurd and false".
"The situation on the state border with Armenia is stable and is under the Azerbaijani State Border Service's control. The State Border Service takes measures to promptly regulate all controversial issues, avoiding tensions, keep in touch with the representatives of Russia on a daily basis and take a constructive approach to resolve all emerging issues in order to eliminate tension," the statement said.
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