MOSCOW: Russia on Monday expressed “serious concern” over recent tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia and said any unilateral action violating the ceasefire agreement was unacceptable.
The remarks came a day after Azerbaijan said it had established a checkpoint on the only land link to the contested area of Nagorno-Karabakh, sparking an angry reply from Armenia. The two sides have fought two wars over the Karabakh region.
Moscow expresses concern over Azerbaijan-Armenia Tensions
Over 6,500 people were killed in the last war between the two sides in 2020, and ended with a Moscow-brokered agreement. But Armenia, which relies on Moscow as a security guarantor, has accused Russia of failing to fulfill its role in the matter.
Russian Ministry for Foreign Affairs said that they expressed serious concern regarding the situation within the zone of responsibility of Russia’s peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh.
In a statement, Russia’s Ministry of foreign affairs said, “We call on all parties to immediately return to the existing deals.” The statement pointed to “the unacceptability of any unilateral measures” in violation of the Russia-brokered truce and insisted on the “lack of progress” in Moscow-mediated talks between the two foes in the recent past.
Experts said Russia does not want to hurt its ties with Azerbaijan and Turkey over Armenia. Moscow said that the situation is not easy; it needs extra effort. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that everyone should realize that there is no alternative to the execution of the mentioned deal.
Under the Moscow-brokered truce, Azerbaijan is needed to guarantee safe passage through the Lachin corridor. On Sunday, Azerbaijan said it established the checkpoint “to stop the illegal transportation of weapons and mines.”
However, Armenia said setting up the checkpoint was “a violation” of the truce agreement.” According to AFP, France, and the US also condemned the move.
