Lusine Avanesyan
Public Radio of Armenia
Stepanakert

The Nagorno Karabakh Republic welcomes the statement of the OSCE Minsk Group, but has certain reservations, Spokesman for the NKR President David Babayan told a press conference today.

According to him, the statements should be more targeted and should express a clear stance on Azeri actions. “We are ready to assume responsibility, but we are not the party violating the ceasefire,” he said.

David Babayan said “all members of the OSCE Minsk Group are interested in the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict. “If the clashes grow into large-scale military actions, the whole region will turn into a battle scene, many countries will get involved whether they want it or not,” he added.

The Spokesman said he expects hot discussions during the forthcoming visit of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs.

In response to a question by the , Babayan said they have all grounds to assert that there are terrorists and extremists fighting on the Azerbaijani side. “We’ve heard from our soldiers that they have seen people speaking Turkish and Arabic, wearing uniforms differing from that of the Azerbaijani army.”

As for Ankara’s role, David Babayan said “Turkey is inciting clashes” and quoted the leader of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party Selahattin Demirtas as saying that “Turkish President Erdogan and Prime Minister Davutoglu are personally responsible for the current escalation.”