MASIS MAYILIAN: HYSTERIA OF AZERBAIJANI MEDIA ABOUT "ARSONS" IN TERRITORIES UNDER NKR’S CONTROL IS A CAMPAIGN AIMED AT AGGRAVATING OF SITUATION
Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Jun 16 2006
YEREVAN, JUNE 16, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The propaganda
hysteria of Azerbaijani media about allegedly existing cases of arsons
of border populated areas in territories under control of the Nagorno
Karabakh Republic is a campaign aimed at aggravating the situation
in the conflict zone and strengthening the mutual distrust between
the sides. Masis Mayilian, Deputy Foreign Minister of NKR, declared
this answering the questions of media. "In passing, the Azerbaijani
authorities try to divert the attention of the international community
from destruction of Armenian historic and cultural heritage in
the territory of current Azerbaijan, the evidence of which is, in
particular, destruction of Armenian khachkars (cross-stones) in Julfa
(Nakhichevan)," Masis Mayilian emphasized.
According to the NKR Deputy Foreign Minister, inflammation of dry
grass happens in summer in a droughty weather in the lowlands of
Karabakh and putting out the inflammation becomes difficult in
territories bordering upon Azerbaijan in connection with constant
firings from the side of Azerbaijan and impossibility to provide
security of fire-fighting brigades. In addition to dry weather,
reasons for inflammation of dry grass are firings of territories
under NKR’s control with tracer bullets from Azerbaijani positions,
as well as arsons of grass by Azerbaijani servicemen in the neutral
strip dividing borders of NKR and Azerbaijan.
Masis Mayilian informed that on June 15, NKR Foreign Ministry
applied to the Office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE
Chairman-in-Office with a demand to conduct a crisis-monitoring in the
zone bordering upon Azerbaijan for estimating the real situation on
the spot and refuting the far-fetched accusations of the Azerbaijani
party. On its part the NKR Foreign Ministry expressed readiness to
render assistance to the OSCE mission in conducting the monitoring
and to provide the security of its participants in territories under
NKR’s control.
As Noyan Tapan was informed from NKR Foreign Ministry Information and
Analytical Department, Mayilian also reminded that several years ago
the NKR leadership through OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs proposed the
Azerbaijani side as one of the measures on establishment of confidence
working out a bilateral mechanism for coordinating efforts on joint
solution of such kinds of problems, in particular, they were proposed
cooperation for not permitting inflammation of pastures in border
regions. But the initiative of the official Stepanakert did not find
any support in Baku, which demonstrates the real position of the
sides, in particular, lack of the political will of the Azerbaijani
leadership for solving issues of mutual interest.