Monday, Russia Reaffirms ‘Commitment To Armenia’s Security’ NAGORNO-KARABAKH -- Russian soldiers of the peacekeeping force man a checkpoint on a road outside the city of Stepanakert, November 26, 2020 Russia pledged to continue bolstering Armenia’s national security and seeking a “long-term solution” to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as its diplomats commemorated the first anniversary of the outbreak of the Armenian-Azerbaijani war on Monday. The Russian Embassy in Yerevan said its staff observed a minute of silence in memory of people killed during the six-year war stopped by a Russian-brokered ceasefire last November. “Russia attaches particular importance to ensuring that Armenia’s population overcomes the stress caused by the war, feels safe, and gains confidence in the future as soon as possible,” it said in a statement. “As allies, we are always ready to lend a shoulder and we are doing that. “Active efforts and practical steps are being taken to preserve regional stability and security, overcome the consequences of last autumn’s large-scale hostilities, including assistance in the restoration of civil infrastructure, the return of refugees and the final resolution of the issue of Armenian prisoners’ release.” “Russia will continue mediation efforts both in its national capacity and within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group to find a long-term solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” added the statement. Moscow played a key role in stopping the fighting that left at least 6,700 Armenians and Azerbaijanis dead. Under the terms of an Armenian-Azerbaijani ceasefire deal brokered by President Vladimir Putin, it deployed 2,000 Russian peacekeeping troops in Karabakh. Russian troops were also deployed along Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan. Shortly after the war Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian pledged to further deepen Armenia’s defense and security ties with Russia, saying that his country needs “additional security guarantees” in view of the new geopolitical realities in the region. The Russian military has since been helping the South Caucasus state reform and rearm its army. The Russian ambassador in Yerevan, Sergei Kopyrkin, met with Armenia’s former President Levon Ter-Petrosian on Monday. A spokesman for Ter-Petrosian said they discussed “prospects for regional cooperation and security.” He gave no other details. Ter-Petrosian has blamed Pashinian’s government for Armenia’s defeat in the war. He has long championed a compromise solution to the Karabakh dispute. Turkey To ‘Coordinate’ Armenia Policy With Azerbaijan AZERBAIJAN -- Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (left) meets with his Azeri counterpart Ceyhun Bayramov in Baku, November 1, 2020 Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu indicated on Monday that Turkey will continue to link the normalization of its relations with Armenia to a resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict acceptable to Azerbaijan. Cavusoglu said that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has sent “positive messages” to Ankara of late but has yet to respond to offers made by Baku. “As you know, Azerbaijan has offered to sign a comprehensive peace accord with Armenia,” he told a joint news conference in Istanbul with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov. “There has yet to be a positive response from Armenia.” “As always, we will coordinate [Armenia-related] steps that we could take with dear Azerbaijan. We decide together, we take steps together,” Cavusoglu added, according to the Anatolia news agency. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on September 19 that Pashinian has offered to meet with him for talks on improving Turkish-Armenian relations. Erdogan appeared to make such a meeting conditional on Armenia agreeing to open a transport corridor that would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave. Baku also wants Yerevan to recognize Azerbaijani sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh through the “peace treaty” mentioned by Cavusoglu. A senior Armenian official said on Friday that Pashinian’s government still hopes to start a Turkish-Armenian “dialogue without preconditions.” He did not deny that Pashinian proposed a meeting with Erdogan. Armenian opposition leaders have denounced what they see as Pashinian’s secret overtures to Erdogan. They say that Ankara continues to set unacceptable preconditions for establishing diplomatic relations with Yerevan and opening the Turkish-Armenian border. A senior member of the opposition Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) insisted last week that negotiating with the Turks in these circumstances would be tantamount to accepting their preconditions. Turkey provided decisive military assistance to Azerbaijan during the six-week war in Karabakh stopped by a Russian-brokered ceasefire last November. U.S. Envoys Honor Karabakh War Dead Armenia - U.S. Ambassador Lynne Tracy visits the Yerablur Military Pantheon in Yerevan to pay her respects to Armenian soldiers killed in the 2020 war in Nagorno-Karabakh, . The U.S. ambassadors to Armenia and Azerbaijan on Monday paid their respects to Armenians and Azerbaijanis killed in last year’s war over Nagorno-Karabakh. The diplomats visited military cemeteries in Yerevan and Baku respectively on the first anniversary of the outbreak of the six-week war that left at least 6,700 people from both sides dead. “We extend our deepest condolences to the families of those killed and injured last year and in the many years of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan said in a short statement on Ambassador Lynne Tracy’s visit to the Yerablur Military Pantheon. Photographs posted on the embassy’s Facebook page showed Tracy laying flowers at the graves of Armenian soldiers buried there. The U.S. Embassy in Azerbaijan released an identical statement and a photograph of Ambassador Lee Litzenberger standing by Azerbaijani servicemen’s graves adorned with Azerbaijani and Turkish national flags. Azerbaijan - U.S. Ambassador Lee Litzenberger pays his respects to Azerbaijani soldiers killed in the 2020 war in Nagorno-Karabakh, Baku, . Together with Russia and France, the United States has long been spearheading international efforts to end the Nagorno-Karabakh. The three mediating powers co-heading the OSCE Minsk Group tried to stop last year’s war with ceasefire agreements supposedly reached by Armenia and Azerbaijan. One such deal brokered by Washington collapsed immediately after it was due to come into effect on October 26, 2020. The hostilities in and around Karabakh stopped only two weeks later after another deal negotiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin. U.S., Russian and French diplomats have since continued their mediation efforts. They organized in New York on Friday the first meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers since the November truce. While in New York, the ministers also held separate talks with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and U.S. Undersecretary of State Victoria Nuland. Armenia Marks Karabakh War Anniversary NAGORN-KARABAKH -- A serviceman of Karabakh's Defence Army fires an artillery piece towards Azeri positions during fighting over Nagorno-Karabakh, September 28, 2020 Armenians observed a minute of silence, visited a military cemetery in Yerevan and attended requiem services in churches on Monday to mark the first anniversary of the start of a devastating war in Nagorno-Karabakh. The services were held at the Echmiadzin cathedral of the Armenian Apostolic Church and other major churches across Armenia. Catholicos Garegin II, the supreme head of the church, presided over one of those liturgies. The war broke out early on September 27, 2020 when Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military offensive along the Armenian-Azerbaijani “line of contact” around Karabakh. The Azerbaijani army captured four districts south of the Armenian-populated disputed territory as well as Karabakh’s southern Hadrut district and the town of Shushi (Shusha) before a Russian-brokered ceasefire stopped the hostilities on November 10. Baku also regained control in the following weeks over the three other districts occupied by Karabakh Armenian forces in the early 1990s. The truce accord negotiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin also led to the deployment of 2,000 Russian peacekeeping forces in Karabakh and the so-called Lachin corridor connecting the territory to Armenia. According to the Armenian authorities, more than 3,700 Armenian soldiers and 75 civilians were killed during the six-week war. At least 253 others remain unaccounted for. This figure includes dozens of Armenian prisoners believed to be still held by Azerbaijan. Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian visits the Yerablur Military Pantheon in Yerevan on the first anniversary of the start of a war in Nagorno-Karabakh, . Armenia and Karabakh observed at 11 a.m. local time a minute of silence in memory of their war dead. Many of the Armenian soldiers killed in action were buried at Yerablur. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian visited the military pantheon early in the morning. Relatives of fallen soldiers and other Armenians laid flowers later in the day. Thousands of other people silently walked to Yerablur late on Sunday in a candlelight march organized by the main opposition Hayastan alliance. The procession was led by the bloc’s top leader, former President Robert Kocharian. Hayastan and virtually all other Armenian opposition groups hold Pashinian responsible for Armenia’s and Karabakh’s defeat in the war. In the immediate aftermath of the Karabakh truce, most of them joined forces to stage demonstrations in Yerevan aimed at forcing the prime minister and his cabinet to resign. Pashinian refused to quit and decided instead to hold snap parliamentary elections in June. His Civil Contract won the elections with about 54 percent of the vote, according to their official results rejected by the opposition. Armenia - Supporters of the opposition Hayastan alliance march to the Yerablur Military Pantheon, Yerevan, . Later in the morning Pashinian spoke by phone with Ara Harutiunian, the Karabakh president who visited a military cemetery in Stepanakert where hundreds of other fallen soldiers were laid to rest. Pashinian’s office said they discussed ongoing efforts to “overcome consequences of the 44-day Artsakh war.” It said they reaffirmed their commitment to “Artsakh’s revival and further development.” The war anniversary was also marked in Azerbaijan whose government has acknowledged over 2,900 combat and civilian deaths. In a speech delivered on the occasion, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev again said that Azerbaijan’s victory in the war put an end to the conflict. “Azerbaijan restored its territorial integrity,” he said. Armenia maintains that the conflict remains unresolved because there is still no agreement on Karabakh’s status, the main bone of contention. A senior U.S. diplomat has repeatedly made similar statements in recent weeks. The Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers met in New York on Friday for talks hosted by the U.S., Russian and French diplomats co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group. In a joint statement issued after the talks, the mediators reiterated that they are ready to “continue working with the sides to find comprehensive solutions to all remaining issues related to or resulting from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.” Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc. 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.