Tension escalation risks to bring no real progress in Karabakh settlement - Armenian foreign minister
24.02.2020,
14:30
Armenia is concerned over the escalation of tension on the border, Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said Monday in Yerevan at a joint briefing with his Slovak counterpart Miroslav Lajčák, answering a question about yesterday's incident on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border.
YEREVAN, February 24. /ARKA/. Armenia is concerned over the escalation of tension on the border, Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said Monday in Yerevan at a joint briefing with his Slovak counterpart Miroslav Lajčák, answering a question about yesterday's incident on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border.
Azerbaijani troops opened fire on Sunday in the direction of the combat positions of the Armenian armed forces. According to him, one Armenian soldier was injured as a result of the shelling. The shelling from the Azerbaijani side was stopped by Armenian troops' return fire.
Earlier, media reported that on Sunday evening several villages of the Tavush province of Armenia were subjected to shelling, and on the morning of Monday, the village of Koti of the Noyemberyan community in Tavush province bordering with Azerbaijan.
“The situation is overly worrying, because for us the most important element in the entire negotiation process is the reduction in the risk of escalation. The growing risks of escalation will not allow real progress in the negotiation process to be recorded,” Mnatsakanyan said.
He noted that in 2019 a decrease in escalation was recorded, and it was a major achievement.
It is still difficult to him to speak about victims, since even one victim is a lot. However, their number has decreased in comparison with previous years and it is very important to maintain low escalation risks.
"The presence of the wounded is a matter of concern, this is unacceptable, and for our part we will continue to pursue the agenda with concrete proposals for the implementation of measures that will reduce risks and that come from both the proposals made earlier and the latest approaches," Mnatsakanyan said.
The Foreign Minister noted that there are clear proposals and approaches that need to be implemented and consolidated against the backdrop of positive shifts in 2019.
"It is necessary to build and strengthen a ceasefire and ward off any risk of escalation. Threat methods will not work, and they are strictly rejected by Armenia and Artsakh," Mnatsakanyan said.
Karabakh conflict broke out in 1988 when Karabakh, mainly populated by Armenians, declared its independence from Azerbaijan. On December 10, 1991, a few days after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a referendum took place in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the majority of the population (99.89%) voted for secession from Azerbaijan. Afterwards, large-scale military operations began. As a result, Azerbaijan lost control over Nagorno-Karabakh and the seven regions adjacent to it. Some 30,000 people were killed in this war and about one million people fled their homes.
On May 12, 1994, the Bishkek cease-fire agreement put an end to the military operations. Тalks brokered by OSCE Minsk Group are being held over peaceful settlement of the conflict. The group is co-chaired by USA, Russia and France..-0--
Azerbaijani troops opened fire on Sunday in the direction of the combat positions of the Armenian armed forces. According to him, one Armenian soldier was injured as a result of the shelling. The shelling from the Azerbaijani side was stopped by Armenian troops' return fire.
Earlier, media reported that on Sunday evening several villages of the Tavush province of Armenia were subjected to shelling, and on the morning of Monday, the village of Koti of the Noyemberyan community in Tavush province bordering with Azerbaijan.
“The situation is overly worrying, because for us the most important element in the entire negotiation process is the reduction in the risk of escalation. The growing risks of escalation will not allow real progress in the negotiation process to be recorded,” Mnatsakanyan said.
He noted that in 2019 a decrease in escalation was recorded, and it was a major achievement.
It is still difficult to him to speak about victims, since even one victim is a lot. However, their number has decreased in comparison with previous years and it is very important to maintain low escalation risks.
"The presence of the wounded is a matter of concern, this is unacceptable, and for our part we will continue to pursue the agenda with concrete proposals for the implementation of measures that will reduce risks and that come from both the proposals made earlier and the latest approaches," Mnatsakanyan said.
The Foreign Minister noted that there are clear proposals and approaches that need to be implemented and consolidated against the backdrop of positive shifts in 2019.
"It is necessary to build and strengthen a ceasefire and ward off any risk of escalation. Threat methods will not work, and they are strictly rejected by Armenia and Artsakh," Mnatsakanyan said.
Karabakh conflict broke out in 1988 when Karabakh, mainly populated by Armenians, declared its independence from Azerbaijan. On December 10, 1991, a few days after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a referendum took place in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the majority of the population (99.89%) voted for secession from Azerbaijan. Afterwards, large-scale military operations began. As a result, Azerbaijan lost control over Nagorno-Karabakh and the seven regions adjacent to it. Some 30,000 people were killed in this war and about one million people fled their homes.
On May 12, 1994, the Bishkek cease-fire agreement put an end to the military operations. Тalks brokered by OSCE Minsk Group are being held over peaceful settlement of the conflict. The group is co-chaired by USA, Russia and France..-0--
