Baku, Azerbaijan, July 6
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The latest Armenian provocation against Azerbaijani civilians illustrates the extent to which the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not frozen, Senator Andre Reichardt, Chairman of the France-Caucasus Friendship Group in the French Senate said in a statement.
"I deeply saddened by the death of innocent civilians who have nothing to do with this conflict, and especially with the death of this child, which makes me particularly sad. I offer my deepest condolences to the families and to the authorities of the Republic of Azerbaijan,” said Reichardt.
He noted that this dramatic event illustrates the extent to which the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not frozen.
In addition to the frequent military casualties, there has been an increase in military clashes in recent weeks, said Reichardt, adding that this absolutely demonstrates that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict must be resolved in a peaceful and equitable manner without delay.
“I said this recently at a conference organized by TEAS in Paris on the subject of refugees and internally displaced persons in Azerbaijan: it is imperative that President Emmanuel Macron exercises leverage over the matter and that France takes the initiative to accelerate the peaceful resolution of the conflict, in collaboration with Russia and the United States, the other co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group,” he noted.
“The withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from Azerbaijani territory is a prerequisite for any peaceful resolution of the conflict. The status quo is unacceptable, and my biggest fear is that the Azerbaijani army will react to the events of yesterday and we will witness a new escalation,” said the senator.
It should be noted that on July 4 at about 20:40 (GMT+4 hours), the Armenian armed forces again violated ceasefire and, using 82-mm and 120-mm mortars and grenade launchers, shelled Azerbaijani positions and territories where the civilian population lives, namely the Alkhanli village of the country’s Fuzuli district, thereby grossly violating the requirements of international law, the Azerbaijani defense ministry said earlier.
As a result of this provocation, the residents of the village Sakhiba Guliyeva, 50, and Zakhra Guliyeva, 2, were killed. Servinaz Guliyeva, 52, who got wounded, was taken to the hospital and was operated on.
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.
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