BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 28
Trend:
The attempts of the occupant Armenia to change the format of negotiations with Azerbaijan are unacceptable, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry's Spokesperson Leyla Abdullayeva said, Trend reports on July 28.
“Armenia, pursuing a policy of occupation and annexation, committing military provocations, targeting civilians, violating international humanitarian law, grossly violating the ceasefire in various directions of the line of contact [with Azerbaijan] every day, is directly responsible for the aggravation of tensions in the region, and has no right to speak about the ceasefire observance, or the cessation of provocative actions,” Abdullayeva stressed.
“The recent military provocation committed by the Armenian armed forces in Azerbaijan’s Tovuz district direction of the [two countries’] border on July 12 is yet another pre-planned act of aggression,” she noted.
The spokesperson pointed out that the entire responsibility for the recent events on the border lies with the military-political leadership of Armenia.
“The policy and contradictory statements of the leadership of Armenia, aimed at deliberate disruption of the negotiation process, openly testify to the desire of this country to strengthen the status quo based on occupation. But I would like to stress that the attempts of Armenia to set some conditions and change the format of negotiations are unacceptable,” she noted.
“We emphasize once again that the existing status quo in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is unacceptable, as it poses a serious threat to peace and security in the region. To change the status quo, Armenian troops must be withdrawn from all the occupied territories of Azerbaijan in accordance with the requirements of the relevant UN Security Council resolutions," added Abdullayeva.
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, 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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.