The process of a prisoner exchange between Armenia and Azerbaijan continues, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.
During the briefing, she noted that in accordance with the trilateral statement of the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia dated November 9 "an exchange of prisoners according to the principle "all for all" has been carried out, this was preceded by a large preparatory work carried out by Russian peacekeepers together with representatives of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday that as a result of these agreements, an exchange of prisoners of war took place on December 14. The commander of the Russian peacekeeping forces personally handed over 12 people to the Azerbaijani side and 44 to the Armenian side.
"I can only add to that for my part that the process of prisoner exchange continues," Zakharova said.
In late September, hostilities resumed in Nagorno-Karabakh, which was a continuation of the years-long conflict and resulted in civilian casualties. The sides made several attempts to conclude a ceasefire, but a trilateral agreement reached on the night of November 10 proved successful. With Moscow mediating, Azerbaijan and Armenia agreed to a complete cease-fire and to an exchange of prisoners and dead bodies. Yerevan also gave Kelbajar, Lachin and Agdam districts to Baku. In addition, Russian peacekeepers are stationed in the region.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said the document was of maximum benefit to his country. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan admitted that the peace decision was difficult for him, but it helped preserve what Karabakh would have lost. After this, protests began in Yerevan demanding the resignation of the head of the government.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from RIA Novosti