The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed about Armenia’s refusal to meet on a peace treaty

Yerevan refused to take part in the meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia on a peace treaty, informed press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. The meeting was scheduled for December 23rd.

“Regret was expressed for Yerevan’s decision to refuse to participate in the December 23 this year. meeting of the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia in Moscow to discuss the preparation of a peace treaty,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said that on December 22, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov had a telephone conversation. “The situation in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping contingent was discussed, which aggravated due to the blocking of the Lachin corridor and disagreements between the parties on the development of ore deposits in the region,” the press service of the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

At the same time, Lavrov stressed the importance of observing trilateral agreements on ensuring “unhindered” communications between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia along the Lachin corridor.

Earlier today, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan declaredthat a food shortage began in Nagorno-Karabakh due to the blocking of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijani representatives.

Azerbaijanis on December 12 for the second time since the beginning of the month blocked the Stepanakert-Goris highway in the Lachin corridor is the only transport artery connecting the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) and Armenia. According to the Azerbaijani side, the pretext for closing on December 12 was the need to check the cargo for the export of gold from mines actually controlled by the NKR.

On December 12, Russian President Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and with the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan. The topic for discussion was the trilateral agreements reached between Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Secretary of the Armenian Security Council Armen Grigoryan December 9 declaredthat Yerevan and Baku reached an agreement on only one point of the peace treaty. He clarified that on the remaining points “there is no clear agreement.” The Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia said that the discussions are on such issues as Nagorno-Karabakh, delimitation and demarcation of the border and deblockade. Humanitarian issues are also included in the discussions.

On November 9, 2020, Armenia and Azerbaijan, mediated by Russia, signed an agreement that put an end to the armed conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh that began on September 27, 2020. However, after that point clashes occurred repeatedly, the parties constantly accuse each other of violating agreements and shelling.