Statement by the Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Artsakh

In his recent interview to a number of media outlets, President of the Azerbaijani Republic Ilham Aliyev, touching upon the Azerbaijan-Karabagh conflict settlement and regional processes, once again used anti-Armenian, destructive, expansionary vocabulary and ideas, dwelling upon relevant programs and goals.

Such a policy is a gross violation of international law, international humanitarian law, and the agreements reached. It aims to torpedo peace and stability initiatives and dismantle the existing formats.

The Azerbaijani leader also specifically targeted the activities of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship and the peacekeeping mission carried out in Artsakh by one of the co-chair countries- the Russian Federation, voicing absurd accusations against their activities.

The OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairmanship is the only format for the settlement of the Azerbaijan-Karabagh conflict agreed by all sides.

We highly appreciate the mission of the Russian peacekeeping forces in Artsakh and consider unacceptable any attempt to cast a shadow on their activities.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh strongly condemns the behavior of Azerbaijan, being convinced that such a policy carried out at the state level should be properly assessed also by the international community.