Russian MoD records violations of the ceasefire regime in Artsakh

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation has recorded 3 violations of the ceasefire regime in the Martuni and Shushi regions, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation said in a message.

According to the source, based on the existing facts, the command of the Russian peacekeeping force is conducting a joint investigation with the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides.

The Artsakh Foreign Ministry commented on the violation of the cease-fire established by the Tripartite Declaration of November 9, 2020, by the Azerbaijani military units stationed in the occupied territories of the Askeran, Martakert, and Martuni regions of the Republic of Artsakh on the night of March 2 and the morning of the 3rd, noting that the illegal blockade of Artsakh against the background of the discussions held between the parties on humanitarian and infrastructural issues in the context of the need to immediately eliminate the situation, Azerbaijan's actions clearly indicate its unwillingness to unconditionally fulfill its commitments, including those arising from the decision of the International Court of Justice, regarding the unblocking of the Lachin Corridor. This was reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh.

It should be reminded that on March 2 and on the night of March 2-3, the units of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, located in the occupied territories of Askeran, Martakert, and Martuni regions of the Republic of Artsakh, violated the ceasefire by using small arms. Artsakh Ministry of Defense press service informs that there are no casualties on the Armenian side.

The ceasefire violation was reported to the command of the Russian peacekeeping troops.  Currently, the situation on the contact line is relatively stable.

Nikol Pashinyan meets the German president

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's working visit to the Federal Republic of Germany continues. Today, the Prime Minister was hosted in the Bundestag and had a meeting with the members of the Foreign Affairs Committee headed by Chairman Michael Roth. The latter welcomed the Prime Minister and noted that the visit is a good opportunity to discuss both the Armenian-German inter-parliamentary cooperation and the processes taking place in the South Caucasus region.

"It has been more than 80 days that the Lachin Corridor has been closed, and during this time Azerbaijan insisted that the Lachin Corridor is not closed, it is open. The decision of the International Court of Justice is very important in terms of clarifying this issue because the court stated that the Lachine Corridor is closed and should be opened.

During my visit, I heard some opinions that support the idea of sending an international monitoring or fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachine Corridor to observe the humanitarian situation and see what is happening there, because it is a crisis that could have irreversible consequences, it can grow into a humanitarian disaster. I think we should work together to prevent the situation from getting out of control. But the most important question is why Azerbaijan is doing this. We are sure that Azerbaijan's goal is to carry out ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh and cleans Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. I think the latest statement of Azerbaijani president Aliyev proves this because Aliyev said that the Lachin Corridor is open for Armenians who want to leave Karabakh, which I think automatically means that the Lachin Corridor is closed for Armenians who live in Nagorno Karabakh and who want to live there. This is the core cause of Azerbaijan's actions," Pashinyan stated at the meeting.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Mrs. Anna Hakobyan visited the residence of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, where they met with the President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and his wife Elke Büdenbender. After the welcoming ceremony, Prime Minister Pashinyan and Mrs. Hakobyan made a note in the book of honored guests, then the Prime Minister had a private conversation with the President of Germany and Mrs. Hakobyan with Elke Büdenbender.

The meeting between the Armenian Prime Minister and the German President continued in an extended format.

Ararat Mirzoyan presented to Josep Borell and Sergey Lavrov the developments in the process of regulating Armenia-Azerbaijan relations

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, who is in New Delhi on a working visit, had a meeting today with the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borell.

They exchanged ideas on issues of the RA-EU partnership agenda and emphasized the deployment of the EU civilian monitoring mission in Armenia, which officially started its work on February 20.

Reference was made to regional and international security issues. Ararat Mirzoyan also presented to the interlocutor the latest developments in the process of regulating Armenia-Azerbaijan relations.

Referring to the humanitarian situation created in Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of the blocking of the Lachin Corridor by Azerbaijan, Ararat Mirzoyan emphasized the imperative to unblock the Lachin Corridor without preconditions,  in accordance with the provisions of the November 9 (2022) announcement.

Mirzoyan also met the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and outlined the direction of the negotiations,"  Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Other News

• Meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Sweden.