Baku, Azerbaijan, June 6
By Aygun Badalova - Trend:
Baku Network expert council discussed the results of escalation of the conflict in early April on the Armenian-Azerbaijani frontline.
Elkhan Alasgarov, head of the Baku Network expert council, US Azeris Network (USAN) Director General Adil Baghirov, USAN co-director Jeyhun Mollazade and USAN member Bedir Mammadli participated in the discussions.
The experts stressed that Armenian provocation led to the escalation over the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
It was noted that Azerbaijani army was able to liberate some of its lands, and therefore tactically it was a major success by the Azerbaijani army, which was also acknowledged by Armenian government.
Experts also talked about their expectations on the negotiations process, which has been trigerred and the efforts that international community should make to push forward a solution of the Karabakh conflict.
During the discussions it was stressed that Azerbaijan has send a message to the international community that the country still hopes to find a solution to the conflict within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and that the country will never accept Armenia-initiated status quo.
On the night of April 2, 2016, all the frontier positions of Azerbaijan were subjected to heavy fire from the Armenian side, which used large-caliber weapons, mortars and grenade launchers. The armed clashes resulted in deaths and injuries among the Azerbaijani population. Azerbaijan responded with a counter-attack, which led to liberation of several strategic heights and settlements.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.