Aggressive rhetoric of Azerbaijan has constantly increased. It has increased before the 2020 war, after it, and I believe that yes, now there is a very high probability of escalation [of tension] both along the border of Armenia and in Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this during his press conference today.
"My conclusion is from Azerbaijan's increasingly aggressive rhetoric and there are certain other data. We are convinced and know 100 percent that it is not Armenia that initiates aggressive actions; and this is the reason why Armenia decided to invite EU observers. Realizing that we are getting questions, we said that ‘we don't mind if you send observers so that you don't need to get our information, you have information on the spot,’" said Pashinyan.
He noted that the initial agreement in Prague in October 2022 was that there would be EU observers on both sides of the border or the line of contact.
"Moreover, the president of Azerbaijan agreed in the presence of everyone, later he refused that option. Azerbaijan accused us of having an army in Nagorno-Karabakh. I said that we do not have an army in Nagorno-Karabakh. I said, this debate has no end, we can do the following: invite international observers to Nagorno-Karabakh, let them assess the situation on the spot and come up with a report. Azerbaijan rejected this option. Even today, I believe that the international community should record that the risk of escalation [of tension] is very high. And taking into account the closure of the Lachin corridor [by Azerbaijan] and the existence of a [resulting] humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as the obvious preparations of Azerbaijan to carry out [Armenian] ethnic cleansing, our position continues to be that it would be a good opportunity to send a fact-finding mission to the Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin corridor," said Pashinyan.
The Armenian Prime Minister stated that the most important factor here is the human and people's will.
"The most important factor here is the will of the Nagorno-Karabakh people to live in their own homeland. By and large, this is what we are talking about. Azerbaijan is trying to break the will of the Nagorno-Karabakh people to live in their homeland. If that will remains steadfast, it is the foundation of all subsequent events.
If anyone thinks that the will of the Armenian people to have an independent state can be broken, I don't think so. We must show our will to have an independent sovereign state.
It is very important that we notice and evaluate those actions aimed at weakening the will to have an independent, sovereign state, which in all cases have an external source. There is no such source within Armenia. If there are such manifestations, they have an external source.
It is very important to prove that we are not to blame for the escalation [of tension]. We have solved that problem along the border. That mechanism exists in Nagorno-Karabakh as well, which I hope will work properly. It’s about the Russian peacekeeping forces in Nagorno-Karabakh and the facts being publicized by them."