Acting PM says restored South Caucasus communications priority for Armenia
By Vafa Ismayilova
Acting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said that the restoration of communications in the South Caucasus region is not only acceptable but also a priority for his country, Russian media have reported.
“In accordance with the reached agreements, in this case, Armenia will have a connection with Iran and Russia,” Pashinyan was quoted as saying.
Speaking about Russian's proposal to create a joint commission to demarcate the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Pashinyan described it as inappropriate.
According to him, against the background of the aggravation of the situation at the border, talks about demarcation "are being conducted out of place".
Earlier Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a press conference with his Tajik counterpart Sirojiddin Mukhriddin that Russia proposed to create a joint commission to demarcate the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
“By prior agreement with the parties, Russia offered to assist at the beginning of the delimitation and demarcation of the border, taking the initiative on the creation of a joint Armenian-Azerbaijani commission for this purpose, in which the Russian Federation could take part as a consultant and a mediator," Lavrov said.
On May 19, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said that Azerbaijan continues to strengthen the border protection system within its territorial integrity, and this process is carried out on the basis of maps available to each side. He said this issue was politicized by Armenia due to the June snap elections and that such differences should be resolved through negotiations.
On November 10, Baku and Yerevan signed a Moscow-brokered deal that brought an end to 44 days of fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani army declared a victory against the Armenian troops. The signed agreement obliged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s.
Before the signing of the deal, the Azerbaijani Army had liberated around 300 villages, settlements, city centres and historic Shusha city.
On January 11, the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders signed the second statement since the end of the 44-day war. The newly-signed statement is set to implement clause 9 of the November 2020 statement related to the unblocking of all economic and transport communications in the region.
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