Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed on Thursday by phone with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov the escalating situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and noted the need for strict observance of the cease-fire regime.
"In connection with the aggravation of the situation on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border from the Russian side, as previously during a phone conversation between Sergey Lavrov and Armenian Foreign Minister Ara Ayvazyan, the need for strict observance of the ceasefire, as well as the strict implementation of other provisions of the statements of the leaders of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia of November 9, 2020, and January 11, 2021, was confirmed," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"The importance of solving all such incidents exclusively by political and diplomatic methods was noted. A readiness was expressed to provide all possible assistance to the consistent normalization of the situation in the South Caucasus," Smolensk Square added.
On Wednesday, the Armenian Defense Ministry reported that early in the morning, the Azerbaijani armed forces tried to carry out "certain works" in one of the border regions of Syunik in order to "adjust the border". According to the ministry, after the measures taken by Armenian units, the Azerbaijani military stopped these works and negotiations on the settlement of the situation are underway. On the same evening, acting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan convened a session of the Armenian Security Council, during which he described the events as an encroachment upon Armenia's territory. According to him, the Azerbaijani armed forces crossed the state border of Armenia, reaching 3.5 km deep.
After the end of hostilities in the conflict zone around Nagorno-Karabakh last autumn, when seven districts adjacent to Nagorno-Karabakh came under Baku's control, Armenia's border with Azerbaijan became directly next to the Syunik region.
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Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS