Armenian Foreign Ministry called on Russia to ensure the withdrawal of Azerbaijani forces from the Lachin corridor

The Armenian Foreign Ministry called on Russia to lift the blockade of the Lachin corridor and ensure the withdrawal of Azerbaijani forces from the entire security zone of the corridor. Yerevan considers unacceptable the installation by Azerbaijan of an illegal checkpoint in the Lachin corridor, reported in the department.

As explained in the Armenian Foreign Ministry, on April 23, the Azerbaijani authorities took steps to establish a checkpoint in the corridor in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping contingent. With this, Baku grossly violated one of the provisions of the tripartite statement, which was signed by the authorities of both republics and Russia in 2020, the report says.

“These and previous similar actions of Azerbaijan, combined with the ongoing hateful and threatening rhetoric aimed at disrupting negotiations on a document on the settlement of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the ministry said.

Yerevan called on the Russian Federation “to fulfill its obligation under paragraph 6 of the tripartite statement by eliminating the illegal blockade of the corridor and ensuring the withdrawal of Azerbaijani forces from the entire security zone of the Lachin corridor.” The Armenian authorities also believe that the UN member states should “clearly record the actions of Azerbaijan, undermining regional security, and take effective steps to ensure the strict implementation of the decision of the International Court of Justice.”

Since the beginning of December 2022, the Armenian side has been talking about the actual blockade of the Lachin corridor in Karabakh by Azerbaijani activists, as a result of which there is a shortage of essential goods in Armenian settlements. Azerbaijan responds with accusations of smuggling weapons through the corridor.

In January, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in a conversation with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, stated the need to unblock the Lachin corridor. According to the then published message of the Russian Foreign Ministry, the unblocking of the corridor should take place in accordance with the parameters of the tripartite statement of November 9, 2020.

The aggravation of the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh began in September 2020, when hostilities began in the region between the military of Armenia and Azerbaijan. As a result, a tripartite statement was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Hostilities have completely ceased in the conflict zone, and Russian peacekeepers have also been deployed along the line of contact and in the Lachin corridor.