Armenia takes an ‘ambiguous stance’ on some issues, including Karabakh: Russia
Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman responded to the claims of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian that Moscow has reduced its efforts in Karabakh after launching a special military operation by saying that "these words have no basis".
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday that the Armenian authorities have an "ambiguous position" on a number of issues in Karabakh, including the deployment of Russian peacekeepers.
At a press conference in Moscow, Zakharova emphasized that there is no basis for Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian's remarks that Moscow has reduced its efforts towards Karabakh after launching a "special military operation" in Ukraine.
“I don't understand if this is Mr. Pashinyan's request. What is he talking about?”, she said.
“Unfortunately, we often see that representatives of the Armenian government take a somewhat ambiguous position on many important issues, and I would like there to be no ambiguity on such an issue,” Zakharova stressed.
She also noted that in the last three months she had many meetings with officials at different levels, including heads of state and foreign ministers. Also, Zakharova made an assessment of the current state of relations between Baku and Yerevan.
RUSSIA IS READY FOR HELP
“Obviously, Baku and Yerevan have to consistently implement what they agreed on. We, as Russia, are ready to help, but our priority is to implement the agreed points of the parties,” she highlighted.
The spokeswoman noted that Armenian high-level officials have repeatedly praised the role of the Russian peacekeeping mission in maintaining security in the region where the soldiers are deployed.
When asked about the territorial disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Zakharova said that Russia believes that they should be resolved through a commission specially established for this purpose.
Relations between the two former Soviet republics have been strained since 1991, when the Armenian army occupied Karabakh and seven neighboring regions, internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.
In the fall of 2020, Azerbaijan liberated many cities, villages and settlements from Armenian occupation in 44 days of conflict. The war ended with a peace agreement brokered by Russia.
Despite ongoing negotiations for a peace agreement, tensions between neighboring countries have increased in recent months over the Lachin corridor, which is the only land route for Armenia to access Karabakh.
Source: Anadolu Agency
