Today at around 16:00, the Azerbaijani armed forces violated the line of contact of Nagorno Karabakh in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping mission and invaded the village of Parukh in Artsakh.
“These aggressive actions of Azerbaijan prove once again that official Baku continues to grossly violate the tripartite statement of November 9, 2020, according to which the hostilities were ceased, the sides stopped in their positions, and a Russian peacekeeping force was stationed along the line of contact in Nagorno Karabakh,” the Armenian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“These actions were preceded by the complete disruption of the work of the only pipeline supplying gas to Artsakh, the targeting of civilian infrastructure with large-caliber weapons, threats to the Armenians of Artsakh, and other steps aimed at ethnic cleansing. Moreover, along with the sharp escalation of the security situation in Europe, such actions by Baku seriously endanger regional stability and peace,” the Foreign Ministry added.
The Ministry voiced hope that given that the provocations are taking place in the area of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping forces, they will take measures to ensure that the Azerbaijani troops return to their starting positions immediately and adhere to the commitments undertaken under the November 9 trilateral statement.
“We call on the international community to make a clear assessment of Azerbaijan’s provocative actions aimed at thwarting the peace process, to support efforts to establish peace in the South Caucasus, and to achieve a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” the Foreign Ministry stated.