cease-fire violations by azeris

[Yervant1]

Public Radio of Armenia
May 18 2021



Military movements near Armenian-Azerbaijani border ‘irresponsible and provocative’ – NSC Adviser Jake Sullivan



US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan spoke separately today with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia and President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne sad in a statement.

Mr. Sullivan conveyed the commitment of the United States to peace, security, and prosperity in the South Caucasus. He expressed concern over recent tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and emphasized that military movements near un-demarcated borders are irresponsible and provocative.

He welcomed the ongoing communication between the two sides and both leaders’ commitment to resolving this issue peacefully.

In addition, he underscored the need for the two countries to conduct formal discussions to demarcate their international border. Finally, he conveyed the commitment of the United States to achieving regional reconciliation through bilateral engagement and as a Minsk Group Co-Chair.


https://en.armradio.am/2021/05/18/military-movements-near-armenian-azerbaijani-border-irresponsible-and-provocative-nsc-adviser-jake-sullivan/

[Yervant1]

Armenpress.com

Catalonia Parliament to officially urge Azerbaijan to release Armenian POWs

Save

Share

14:50, 18 May, 2021

YEREVAN, MAY 18, ARMENPRESS. The Parliament of Catalonia will officially demand Azerbaijan to release the Armenian prisoners of war and will condemn the violation of Armenia’s territorial integrity by Azerbaijan, El Nacional reports.

President of the Parliament of Catalonia Laura Borràs received the representatives of the Catalonian-Armenian community on May 17.

The Chamber will make a statement, urging to release the Armenian POWs and condemning the violation of Armenia’s territorial integrity.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

 

 

https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1052658.html?fbclid=IwAR3SdIHxaGLaIYTTi9-cL_OQ57KXSukx-YmFFPx4Nf6vWZ0YTi25L3Vyx3o

[Yervant1]

JAM News

May 19 2021

Armenian-Azerbaijan border crisis deepens as Azerbaijan fails to attend negotiations

• JAMnews, Yerevan

For the last week, Armenia has been discussing the escalation in the border region which erupted when Azerbaijani servicemen advanced their positions several kilometers into the sovereign territories of Armenia, towards the Syunik and Gegharkunik regions. Throughout this time, the two countries have been holding negotiations, and the next round was scheduled for May 19, however, Azerbaijan violated the agreement and did not attend.

The situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border has worsened since May 12. The Azerbaijani Armed Forces advanced their positions several kilometers deep into Armenia’s Syunik region, in the direction of the Sevlich reservoir (Black Lake). Later, a similar incident was reported in the Gegharkunik region.

Armenia demands that Azerbaijani servicemen immediately leave the territory of the country and retreat to their initial positions. In turn, Azerbaijan refuses to comply and insists that their troops are positioned within the territory of Azerbaijan.

On May 18, the Armenian media released a map of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR, which shows that the western, southern, and eastern coasts of Sev Lich were located within Armenian SSR while only is only a part of the northern coast, representing about 10% of the lake, was located on the territory of the Azerbaijan SSR.

Armenia began consultations with the Collective Security Treaty Organization – a military bloc which it is a member of, and which Armenia requested provide assistance in resolving the ongoing crisis. On May 19, the CSTO stated that it “is watching with concern the development of the situation in the Syunik region of Armenia.”

As a result of ongoing tensions, the US State Department urged its citizens not to travel to Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh, and Azerbaijan.

India has already reacted to the situation and called on Azerbaijan to withdraw its troops from the territory of Armenia. Earlier, Iran issued a statement saying that “it will not allow alterations of its northern borders” and insisting on preserving the existing borders with Armenia.

• PM Pashinyan: Azerbaijani Armed Forces’ aggression growing on Armenian borders
• Will upcoming elections in Armenia just be a repeat of the past?

State Department urges US citizens not to travel to Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh

The US State Department urged its citizens to refrain from traveling to Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, and undertake the roads near the border with Azerbaijan with extra caution.

This is explained by the fact that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of Armenia reported growing numbers of COVID-19 cases and the State Department has established a level four alert in Armenia:

“Please refrain from traveling to Armenia amidst the growing risks of COVID-19 infection in some areas of the country”.

The State Department also urged US citizens not to visit Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent territories because of the recent hostilities:

“After intense hostilities during the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the fall of 2020, tensions continue in the area. The US government will not be able to provide emergency services to US citizens in and around Nagorno-Karabakh due to limited access”.

A similar warning regarding visits to Azerbaijan has been released on the website of the State Department. In addition to the high risk of contracting the coronavirus, the American authorities are warning of serious terrorist threats.

Statement by the Secretary of the Security Council

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow had come up with an initiative to create a joint Armenian-Azerbaijani commission on border demarcation and delimitation, in which the Russian Federation would take part as a mediator.

In turn, Secretary of the Security Council Armen Grigoryan stated that Yerevan welcomes the efforts of Russia, but in order to solve the issue of demarcating and delimiting the state border, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces must leave the territory of Armenia first.

Grigoryan added that Azerbaijan’s actions are clearly aimed at disrupting the fulfillment of the obligations outlined in the joint statements with Russia of November 9, 2020 and January 11, 2021 on the cessation of hostilities and further actions of conflict parties.

What does the CSTO say?

CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas stated that the situation on the Armenian border was the subject of discussion during the meeting of the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) in Dushanbe.

“We emphasize that there is no alternative to the implementation of the trilateral agreements of November 9, 2020”, Zas said.

Armenia uses USSR maps to prove that Sev Lich lake belongs to Armenia

On May 18, a map of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR appeared in the Armenian media, proving that most of the Sevlich reservoir is located in the Armenian SSR. The map shows that only a part of the northern shore of the lake is located in the territory of the Azerbaijan SSR.

Over the past 30 years, no legally binding delimitation or demarcation work has been carried out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Therefore, as Armenia maintains, the maps of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR remain the most accurate, complete, and fundamental sources upon which the process of demarcation should be based on.

https://jam-news.net/armenian-azerbaijan-border-crisis-deepens-as-azerbaijan-fails-to-attend-negotiations/

[Yervant1]

Jamestown Foundation

May 18 2021

Karabakh Conflict Takes a Dangerous Turn

Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 18 Issue: 79 By: Paul Goble

May 18, 2021 06:00 PM Age: 22 hours

Coming to an agreement about the border is not going to be easy, even with both sides now committed to talks. Perhaps, the best short-term solution would be for the armies of the two countries to pull back from the disputed areas and allow the geographers and diplomats to do their work. But it remains to be seen whether such a mutual withdrawal would even be possible in the current overheated atmosphere, especially as Russian forces are the only ones who appear ready to fill such a vacuum. As the events of last week show, almost any move can trigger the potential for local violence or a broader war—even with the international community compelled to try to prevent that from happening.In mid-May 2021, the Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan began to take on a dangerous new dimension. In contrast to the last 25 years—when fighting between the two countries mainly took place on territory internationally recognized as Azerbaijan’s (with a notable exception last summer—see EDM, July 14, 2020)—now, there is a real danger that clashes could erupt on both sides of the state border and bring to a bloody end the unsteady ceasefire. In the intense fighting last autumn (September 27–November 9, 2020), Baku succeeded in eliminating the buffer zone Yerevan had established around Karabakh, and today Azerbaijan has forces arrayed along nearly the entire length of the shared border, directly opposite Armenian units. This situation is particularly fraught because this geopolitically important boundary has not been delimited and demarcated by the two countries. Consequently, the danger of misunderstandings and miscalculations that could trigger the resumption of a broader war is serious. Over the last few days, some members of the international community, including Russia, the United States and France, have been actively working to prevent that from happening (RIA Novosti, May 18).

The current crisis started on May 12–13, when Azerbaijani soldiers moved deeper into the border region. Baku has insisted that they were simply shifting positions on Azerbaijani territory, but Yerevan denounced the move as an incursion into Armenian territory to a depth of as much as two kilometers. Since that time, Azerbaijani forces have continued to move about, withdrawing in some sectors by several hundred meters and moving forward by the same amount in others, which Baku explains as simple relocations, while Yerevan claims were the result of Armenian and Russian pressure (Yerkramas, May 15). In any case, Yerevan has appealed to Moscow, Paris and other Western capitals for additional assistance in forcing the Azerbaijanis to withdraw and in organizing talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan about the demarcation of the border—something it earlier said it would not participate in until bilateral diplomatic relations were established (Kavkazsky Uzel, December 30, 2020).

The Armenian defense ministry contends it now has the situation under control, that it restored Armenian control around the disputed Black Lake, and that it is in a position to force Azerbaijani forces to withdraw from other sectors (Novosti-Armeniya, SM News, May 18). But many analysts, as well as Armenians living in the region, doubt such assertions. Several days ago, Armenian villagers near the border, just as they did in December, have called on Yerevan to arm them so that they can defend Armenia. In their view, the Armenian military has proven incapable of the task. And to broadcast their displeasure with the government, the locals have even blocked roads in the area, a display of anger that is complicating the approaching parliamentary elections in that country (Yerkramas, May 15; News.am, May 18).

Since the latest escalation in border tensions, Yerevan and Baku have been holding multi-day talks under Russian auspices. Officials from Moscow suggested on Monday (May 17) that both sides had reached an agreement; but the fact that more talks are scheduled for tomorrow indicates that statement was, at best, an overly optimistic assessment (Izvestia, Armeniasputnik.am, May 17). Nevertheless, at least for public consumption, Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders are on the same page about the need to delimitate their shared borders, and they have indicated they will jointly work with Moscow in doing so (News.ru, May 18; Izvestia, Armeniasputnik.am, May 17; Moscow-baku.ru, May 15).

The issue of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, especially in the vicinity of Azerbaijan’s de-occupied/liberated territories, is not a new one, but it has arisen again, with particular force, for three reasons. First, as noted above, Armenian and Azerbaijani forces are now located directly opposite one another. Second, Moscow’s call for the opening of cross-border transportation lines—especially in Armenia’s Syunik Oblast, a land bridge between Azerbaijan proper and Azerbaijan’s Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic that Azerbaijanis refer to as the Zengezur corridor—stands at the center of the Moscow-brokered ceasefire. This is a potentially volatile situation given that Baku likely has the resources to unilaterally build roads and railways through the Syunik/Zengezur corridor, while Yerevan cannot afford to do so across Nakhchivan without outside help (see EDM, April 5; Windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com, March 7; Kavkazsky Uzel, March 5). And third, behind all this exists the issue of Turkish influence in the South Caucasus. If this corridor is reopened, Turkey will be connected overland with mainland Azerbaijan and Central Asia—something Armenia, Russia and Iran are all concerned about (see EDM, January 25; News.am, May 17).

Delimiting and demarcating the Armenian-Azerbaijani border not only in Syunik (Zengezur) but elsewhere is going to be extremely difficult. The two sides are still far apart on where the border line should be located, and there is no common or recent map from which they can work. Two competing Soviet-era maps are available, although both are more than 30 years old. Up to now, Armenia has relied on one and Azerbaijan on the other. Armenia uses a Soviet topographic map produced by Moscow geographers because it shows Armenian sovereignty extending to 80 percent of the disputed Black Lake and all the territory Yerevan says Baku has violated over the last week. In turn, Azerbaijan prefers to rely on a Soviet military map, which shows far more of the lake as well as all the territory Azerbaijani forces have moved into to be part of Azerbaijan (Armeniasputnik.am, May 18). In short, in the words of Aleksandr Skakov, the deputy director of the Moscow Institute of Oriental studies, “there is no one Soviet map that would allow for defining the borders” (Kavkazsky Uzel, May 15; Windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com, May 16).

Paul Goble is a longtime specialist on ethnic and religious questions in Eurasia. Most recently, he was director of research and publications at the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy. Earlier, he served as vice dean for the social sciences and humanities at Audentes University in Tallinn and a senior research associate at the EuroCollege of the University of Tartu in Estonia. While there, he launched the “Window on Eurasia” series. Prior to joining the faculty there in 2004, he served in various capacities in the U.S. State Department, the Central Intelligence Agency and the International Broadcasting Bureau as well as at the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He writes frequently on ethnic and religious issues and has edited five volumes on ethnicity and religion in the former Soviet space. Trained at Miami University in Ohio and the University of Chicago, he has been decorated by the governments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania for his work in promoting Baltic independence and the withdrawal of Russian forces from those formerly occupied lands.

[Yervant1]

Panorama, Armenia

May 19 2021

Armenian military completely deprived Azerbaijani forces of opportunity to take any action – Defense Ministry

The situation after the provocations carried out by the Azerbaijani military in some border areas of Armenia’s Syunik and Gegharkunik Provinces on 12 and 13 May has not changed significantly as of Wednesday morning, the Armenian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

In all directions of the provocations by the Azerbaijani forces, the territories, the Azerbaijani troops and their potential supply lines remain under the full control of the Armenian forces.

“Moreover, in the previous two days, additional units of the Armenian army were deployed in the area, completely depriving the Azerbaijanis of the opportunity to take any action even theoretically, leaving their return to the starting positions as the only reasonable solution for them.

"Nevertheless, the negotiations on a peaceful settlement of the issue are underway. The Defense Ministry is hopeful that they will produce the desired result and the existing situation will be settled in a peaceful way. At the same time, as it has already been announced, in the event of absence of a solution within reasonable timeframes, the armed forces of the Republic of Armenia reserve the right to resolve the issue by other means, including by force, "the statement reads.

 

https://www.panorama.am/en/news/2021/05/19/Defense-Ministry/2504654

[Yervant1]

 

Asbarez.com

 

Yerevan Takes Azerbaijan’s Invasion Attempt Directly to CSTO

May 19, 2021

http://asbarez.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/1052785.jpeg

Armenia’s Foreign Minister Ara Aivzayan speaks at the CSTO foreign ministers’ council in Dushanbe, Tajikistan on May 19

The incursion by Azerbaijan into Armenia’s sovereign territory is a direct threat to the security of the region, as well as to CSTO members states, said Armenia’s Foreign Minister Ara Aivazyan on Wednesday while addressing the Collective Security Treaty Organization’s council of foreign ministers underway in Dushanbe, Tajikstan.

After Azerbaijani forces breached Armenia’s border and advanced several kilometers into Armenia, where they have been holding their position pending negotiations, Armenia officially appealed to the CSTO for help in defending one of its member states.

Aivazyan highlighted the security complication created by Azerbaijan’s actions, warning of the security implications for not just the Caucasus, but the entire region, saying a security response by the CSTO has become quite relevant.

While neither the CSTO or Russia, which received a similar call for help from Yerevan, this was the first time since Azerbaijan’s invasion attempts that Yerevan was able to address the situation with leaders of CSTO members states in person.

In discussing the Karabakh conflict, Aivazyan said the use of force by Azerbaijan can in no way lead to a resolution of the conflict, adding that the conflict must be solved exclusively through diplomacy under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship and based on the joint and comprehensive implementation of the principles developed by that mediation mission.

Ahead of the foreign ministers’ council, the CSTO’s Secretary-General Stanislav Zas said that the organization continues to monitor the developments in Armenia’s Syunik Province and did not respond to Armenia’s plea for help.

Zas welcomed negotiations that have been ongoing between the sides, under Russia’s mediation, as well as the reaching of the agreement on withdrawing some of the units.

On Wednesday, the Azerbaijani side did not show up to scheduled meetings aimed achieving a negotiated settlement to the border tensions.

“We see prospects for establishing lasting peace. There are no shootings any more, but the situation remains tense,’’ Zas acknowledged.

In discussing Armenia’s appeal to the CSTO, Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan told a National Security Council session on Wednesday that the CSTO possesses the security tools, despite its slow response to Yerevan’s request.

“We will also continue our diplomatic efforts to provide the international community complete information and increasing international pressure on Azerbaijan,” said Pashinyan, adding that Yerevan continues its talks with Armenia’s “strategic ally,” Russia.

http://asbarez.com/202599/yerevan-takes-azerbaijans-invasion-attempt-directly-to-csto/?fbclid=IwAR3x3YhNS3bClvYcXcCsfyNYmV62tgLCY0AGtSUWlmaqg3Lg8NHjH8M8eKs

[Yervant1]

Armenpress.com

India calls on Azerbaijan to pull back forces amid border incursion into Armenia

Save

Share

14:51, 19 May, 2021

YEREVAN, MAY 19, ARMENPRESS. India follows, with concern, the situation along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, the spokesperson of the Indian ministry of external affairs said in response to media queries.

“Border incursions through military movements can destabilize the situation and lead to renewed hostilities. We call upon the transgressing side to pull back forces immediately and cease any further provocation.

India has always stood for peaceful resolution of bilateral disputes through political and diplomatic means. Peace and stability in the South Caucasus region is important from the regional security perspective”, the spokesperson said.

Recently, on May 12, the Azerbaijani armed forces have illegally crossed into Armenia’s territory, in particular the Sev Lake in Syunik province. Thanks to the actions of the Armenian side, some of the Azerbaijani forces have returned back to their initial positions, but some Azeri troops still remain in some border sections of Armenia’s Syunik and Gegharkunik provinces. Negotiations over the withdrawal of the Azerbaijani forces are taking place.

Editing by Aneta Harutyunyan

 

 

https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1052776.html?fbclid=IwAR3x3YhNS3bClvYcXcCsfyNYmV62tgLCY0AGtSUWlmaqg3Lg8NHjH8M8eKs

[MosJan]

i don't know who to believe, i don't know who to trust

[Yervant1]

TASS, Russia

May 20 2021

Pashinyan says about 500-600 Azerbaijani military servicemen remain on Armenian soil

On May 12, the Armenian Defense Ministry said that Azerbaijan’s armed forces had tried to carry out "certain work" in one of the border districts of the Syunik Province in order to "adjust the border"

YEREVAN, May 20. /TASS/. The situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border remains tense, given that about 500-600 Azerbaijani military servicemen are still on Armenian soil, Armenia’s Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a government meeting on Thursday.

"I want to state that the situation on the specified sections of the border with Azerbaijan has remained unchanged. It is tense in the sense that about 500-600 Azerbaijani military servicemen remain on our sovereign territory. They must leave our soil, we continue to pursue political solutions to the problem and are doing our utmost to prevent any military escalation," he explained.

On May 12, the Armenian Defense Ministry said that Azerbaijan’s armed forces had tried to carry out "certain work" in one of the border districts of the Syunik Province in order to "adjust the border." Later in the evening that day, Armenia’s Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the Azerbaijani armed forces had crossed Armenia’s state border, advancing 3.5 kilometers deep into its territory. The parties have held talks on ironing out the situation several times. The latest round mediated by Russia was held on May 16.

https://tass.com/world/1291791

[Yervant1]

EurasiaNet.org

May 20 2021

Armenia close to new agreement with Azerbaijan Acting prime minister Nikol Pashinyan confirmed that the two sides are close to an agreement, which reportedly could involve additional territorial concessions.Ani Mejlumyan May 20, 2021

Armenia is set to sign an agreement with Azerbaijan that could address many of the current disputes between the two sides, but amid collapsing trust in the government many Armenians are demanding that the terms of the deal be made public.

On May 20, Armenia’s acting prime minister Nikol Pashinyan confirmed the authenticity of a document that had been circulating online since the previous evening. He called it a “preliminary agreement” that was “100 percent consistent with the national interests of Armenia. If Azerbaijan implements the agreements [that are stipulated in the document] then I will sign the document,” he told a government session.

A heavily redacted image of a document, to be signed by Pashinyan, Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev and Russian President Vladimir Putin was released earlier by Mikayel Minasyan, a son-in-law of former president Serzh Sargsyan and a leading critic and gadfly of Pashinyan. The unredacted part of the document calls for the creation of a joint commission to demarcate the border between the two countries, and for each country to appoint delegates to the commission by May 31.

Minasyan wrote on his Telegram channel that other parts of the agreement called for the withdrawal of Azerbaijani forces from the border area into which they made an incursion a week earlier, the return of some Armenians who remain detained in Azerbaijan, and the handover of six villages. Minasyan didn’t specify the villages, but he likely was referring to several slivers of land in Azerbaijan’s Qazax region that Armenia took control of as the Soviet Union was collapsing. Minasyan said that Pashinyan was still working on a way to word the agreement “in a way that [the handover of the villages] will be unnoticeable so that it will be easy for him to get re-elected.”

Minasyan said that Foreign Minister Ara Ayvazyan has refused to sign the document. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not commented on the allegation.

There was no confirmation from Azerbaijan about the draft agreement, but a number of pro-government media reported on Pashinyan’s statement.

The news of a draft agreement came amid one of the tensest periods in post-war Armenia, as an Azerbaijani incursion into a border region in southern Armenia raised fears that fighting could resume again and that Azerbaijan is seeking additional concessions from a weakened Yerevan. More than a week after their advance, a large group of Azerbaijani soldiers remain in what Armenian officials have said is Armenian territory.

Following the late-evening release of the document, a group of protesters gathered in front of the government headquarters in Yerevan, demanding that Pashinyan be transparent in his negotiations with Baku. “Pashinyan, the minister of defense, and the president have to come here and explain what document they are signing,” said Marina Poghosyan, the head of the human rights NGO Veles, said at the demonstration. “We didn’t give them permission to trade our lands.

In his comments the following morning, Pashinyan did not address any of the details that Minasyan described. While he confirmed the authenticity of the draft, he called Minasyan an Azerbaijani agent.

“In the modern world the information war is sometimes more important than the actions in the battlefield,” Pashinyan said. “Azerbaijan has its agents of information war among Armenia's political elite,” said the prime minister.

“The document that is being circulated on the Internet, is 90 percent redacted and this is claimed to be proof that the Armenian government is signing an anti-Armenian document. If this is an anti-Armenian document, why it is redacted? It should have been fully disclosed and presented to the public,” Pashinyan said. But he added that he wouldn’t disclose the document himself until a final version is reached.

Following the government meeting, reporters asked Economy Minister Vahan Qerobyan about the claim that the document called for the handover of six villages. “No, I can’t go into details but no, there is nothing like that,” he said.

Pashinyan is at the moment only acting prime minister, having resigned to trigger early elections, which are scheduled for June 20. Many have argued that as effectively a caretaker leader, he should not sign any binding agreements with Azerbaijan before the election. “We propose that all forces participating in the election sign a joint document stating that no negotiations took place before a new government is formed, no document should be signed by the current government or acting officials,” wrote Edmon Marukyan, the head of the Bright Armenia party, on Facebook.

Demands have come from several quarters to publish the full document. A demonstration was planned for 7 p.m. in front of the government. Arman Gharibyan, the head of another human rights organization, Human Rights Power, called on people to attend and used a hashtag roughly translating as “not belonging to any political party.”

Ombudsman Arman Tatoyan also called for the document to be released. “The demarcation with Azerbaijan directly concerns vital rights of all of us, every person living in Armenia,” he wrote on Facebook. If the document isn’t released “the information vacuum created by the state will again be filled with information from unofficial sources, confusing even honest people, and some officials will again make irresponsible posts,” Tatoyan wrote.

 

Ani Mejlumyan is a reporter based in Yerevan.

https://eurasianet.org/armenia-close-to-new-agreement-with-azerbaijan

[Yervant1]

Greek City Times

May 20 2021

Greek Foreign Ministry: Armenia’s territorial integrity has to be respectedby Athens Bureau

 

The Greek Foreign Ministry has called for Armenia’s territorial integrity to be respected as the Azerbaijani military has been occupying several territories of Armenia since May 14 and refuses to withdraw.

“Tensions along Armenia‘s border are of particular concern,” the Foreign Ministry said in a tweet.

“Armenia’s territorial integrity has to be respected,” the statement said, adding: “It is essential to avoid any unilateral actions that could undermine regional peace and stability.”

Tensions along #Armenia's border are of particular concern. Armenia’s territorial integrity has to be respected. It is essential to avoid any unilateral actions that could undermine regional peace and stability

— Υπουργείο Εξωτερικών (@GreeceMFA) May 19, 2021

 

Around 500-600 Azerbaijani troops currently occupy areas of Armenia and are refusing to withdraw.

Earlier today Armenian troops had to fire warning shots to halt the advance of Azerbaijani soldiers.

 

https://greekcitytimes.com/2021/05/21/greek-foreign-ministry-armenia/

[Yervant1]

Aysor, Armenia

May 20 2021

European Parliament adopts resolution obliging Azerbaijan release all Armenian captives

The European Parliament adopted resolution obliging Azerbaijan to release Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians without any pre-conditions, Prosperous Armenia faction member Naira Zohrabyan wrote on Facebook, adding that the document was backed by 607 MPs.

"The discussions lasted for few hours and the European deputies simply destroyed Azerbaijan," Zohrabyan wrote, adding that the resolution is a result of the lasting serious work.

"Davit Shahnazaryan, Armen Ashotyan, Levon Zurabyan, Armenian Cause Office in Brussels and Siranuysh Sahakyan's team brilliantly worked on it," the deputy wrote.

https://www.aysor.am/en/news/2021/05/20/europe-captives/1835522

[Yervant1]

Aysor, Armenia

May 20 2021

Other 30 Azeri soldiers enter Armenia's territory - Syunik governor

Other 30 Azerbaijani soldeirs entered Armenia's territory, Syunik governor Melikset Poghosyan told RFE/RL Armenia Service.

"An hour ago I received information that they again violated our state border from the right side of Lake Sev," he said.

https://www.aysor.am/en/news/2021/05/20/azeri-syunik/1835531

[Yervant1]

Asbarez.com

EU Ambassador Says Most of Sev Lidj Falls in Armenia’s Territory

May 20, 2021

http://asbarez.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/1052939.jpeg

EU’s Head of Delegation to Armenia Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin

A group of ambassadors representing European countries, as well the European Union’s Head of Delegation to Armenia visited Syunik on Thursday to gain first-hand knowledge of the week-long border standoff, which started when Azerbaijani forces breached the sovereign border of Armenia in the Syunik Province and advanced several kilometers into the Sev Lidj “Black Lake” region with a reported 250 soldiers currently camped out in Armenia proper.

“I have heard about a few maps. Today we were shown the map of 1969. I am not an expert and cannot express a concrete opinion, but it was obvious from today’s map that greater part of the Black Lake is located in the territory of the Republic of Armenia,” EU’s Head of Delegation Ambassador Andrea Wiktorin told reporters.

Before visiting the Sev Lidj area, Armenian Armed Forces corps commander Samvel Minasyan presented to the Ambassadors the map of the Armenian SSR of 1969 ratified by documents, signatures and stamps.

Wiktorin said the EU uses all its levers for contributing to a resolution of the situation and that the European Union firmly supports territorial integrity.

Minasyan briefed 11 ambassadors of European countries and 3 representatives of the European Union who visited Goris on a fact-finding mission to assess the situation at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in the Black Lidj area.

Azerbaijani troop movement to Sev Lidj was detected as of 7 a.m. on May 12, Minasyan told the European envoys, adding that the actual incursion took place at night.

“Before May 12, the Armenian military units were located near the state border and were carrying out border protection. The Azerbaijani servicemen were carrying out combat shifts on the opposite side. In December of 2020, during border adjustments the servicemen of Armenia and Azerbaijan had,” Minasyan said.

The initial 250 Azeri troops who invaded the territory were from various branches of the Azeri military, the border guards and the special forces, explained Minasyan who added that the situation is under control and that the Armenian units are located in conditions of direct contact with Azerbaijani forces.

The ambassadors asked Minasyan whether Azerbaijan had been accumulating troops along the border. Commander Minasyan told the envoys that Azerbaijan is amassing forces at the border adding that “reconnaissance drones were also detected.”

Ambassador Wiktorin, the EU Head of Delegation, also told reporters that the European Union is concerned about the issue of the Armenian prisoners of war, who are being held captive in Azerbaijan, referring to Thursday’s debate in the European Parliament about the issue.

“I am expressing my respect and support to the families of the POWs, whom I met and regularly meet with. This is the issue which must be raised at all levels,” said Wiktorin.

In addition to Wiktorin, the delegation included EU representative Jan Plešinger, EU representative Silvia Zehe and the ambassadors of the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden and Greece.

http://asbarez.com/202618/eu-ambassador-says-most-of-sev-lidj-falls-in-armenias-territory/?fbclid=IwAR18KySByhkOH1BHYAuZ0h9nwp1hYktHETkRldAaWDO4DSO6Z5lLkrwsd34

[Yervant1]

Greek military representative inspects Armenia-Azerbaijan borderby Paul Antonopoulos

 

Military attaché’s accredited in Armenia visited Syunik Province in Armenia’s south, including Greece’s Colonel Gerasimo Avloniti.

Azerbaijan has been occupying pockets of Syunik province and other areas of Armenia to force Yerevan to open transportation corridors across its territory.

As part of the working visit, a military attaché from the Greek Embassy in Yerevan, as well as other delegates from the U.S., Ukraine, Germany, France and Georgia were present to familiarise themselves with the situation.

After negotiations stalled last weekend to see Azerbaijan withdraw from Armenian territories, a new round of talks scheduled for Wednesday were halted due to Azerbaijan’s absence, demonstrating it is uninterested in resolving the issue.

Armenia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that if Azerbaijan does not withdraw “within a reasonable timeframe,” they may use force to remove the Azerbaijani troops.

Following this warning, the foreign military delegates conducted their tour of Syunik province, including Greece’s Colonel Gerasimo Avloniti.

https://greekcitytimes.com/2021/05/21/greek-military-armenia-border/

[Yervant1]

I think fake sultan is itching for another war, this time against Armenia!

Public Radio of Armenia

May 21 2021

Lithuanian parliamentarians express concern over reports of growing tension between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Members of the Seimas Group for Inter-Parliamentary Relations with the Republic of Armenia adopted the statement on the situation on the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The statement notes that Lithuania is closely monitoring the situation on the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The parliamentarians expressed their concern about reports of rising tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan with reports of an incursion into the Armenian territory.

The Members of the Seimas Group for Inter-Parliamentary Relations with the Republic of Armenia urge all parties to respect the ceasefire agreement achieved on November 10 fully and to continue to negotiate a permanent and peaceful settlement. The call is issued for stopping all action that would undermine the ceasefire and escalate tensions.

The expectation is voiced that Azerbaijan will immediately pull back its forces.

 

https://en.armradio.am/2021/05/21/lithuanian-parliamentarians-express-concern-over-reports-of-growing-tension-between-armenia-and-azerbaijan/

 

[Yervant1]

Aysor, Armenia

May 21 2021

Azeri servicemen advanced for 1,5km into Armenia’s territory, threatened Armenian soldiers to open fire

On May 20 at approximately 10 am a group of Azeri armed servicemen without permission crossed the state border of Armenia in Khoznavar settlement of Tegh community of Syunik province, Armenia’s Military Prosecutor’s Office reports.

They advanced for 1,5 km into Armenia’s territory and voiced threats of usage of force, stating that the territory belongs to Azerbaijan and threatened to open fire in case Armenian servicemen go forward. After it the Armenian servicemen managed to send them to starting positions.

“On the same day at about 9.10 pm a group of Azerbaijani servicemen again without relevant permission crossed the state border in the same sector and started fight with a group of Armenian servicemen – implementing their service duties – who went toward them. As a result of brawl 11 representatives of the Armenian Armed Forces received different body injuries. This time as well the Armenian Armed Forces servicemen managed to send them [Azeri servicemen] to starting positions,” the Armenian Military Prosecutor’s Office reported.

Criminal case has been filed into the case.

https://www.aysor.am/en/news/2021/05/21/khoznavar-azeri/1835946

[Yervant1]

Asbarez.com

Baroness Cox Faults UK Government for Failing to Address Baku’s Aggression

May 21, 2021

http://asbarez.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Caroline-Cox-Artsakh-2.jpg

Baroness Cox visited Artsakh in November, accompanied by Armenia’s Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan

During a debate on Thursday, Caroline Cox, a member of the British House of Lords, discussed Azerbaijan’s refusal to release Armenian prisoners of war and civilian detainees, atrocities perpetrated by Azerbaijan during the Karabakh War last fall, as well as the escalation of anti-Armenian rhetoric or Armenophobia in Azerbaijan.

Baroness Cox also presented the current situation resulting from the incursion of the Azerbaijani armed units to the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia.

“I visited Karabakh during that war and witnessed the perpetration of war crimes by Azerbaijan, including the deliberate bombing of civilian targets such as the maternity hospital in Stepanakert. However, despite a ceasefire in November, there are at least four urgent concerns, which Her Majesty’s Government, unlike the Governments of France, the United States and Canada, have failed adequately to address,” said Cox.

The first, she said, is the refusal by Azerbaijan to release Armenian prisoners of war and civilian detainees who are subject to killings—including beheadings—torture and indefinite imprisonment.

Secondly, the Baroness added, there are serious concerns over the fate of hundreds of Armenian Christian monuments and cultural heritage sites, now under Azerbaijan’s control.

“There has already been footage of the jubilant destruction of a church by Azeri soldiers. Between 1997 and 2006, an estimated 28,000 Christian monuments were destroyed by Azerbaijan in the previously Armenian land of Nakhchivan,” she noted.

“Thirdly, anti-Armenian rhetoric, or Armenophobia, by the Azeri president, other officials, and across social media, has escalated, naming Armenians as pigs, dogs and brainless. This hatred has generated the creation of the Spoils of War Park in Baku; it displays mocking, humiliating mannequins of Armenian soldiers, which children are encouraged to hit, and a corridor lined with the helmets of dead Armenian soldiers,” explained Cox.

“Fourthly,” she added, “recently and very disturbingly, Azerbaijani forces have advanced into new positions along the Armenia–Azerbaijan border, away from the conflict zone, and occupied the sovereign territory of Armenia itself. This included, on 12 May, armed units advancing three to four kilometers into the Armenian province of Syunik.”

“The atrocities perpetrated by Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh during the recent war have been so serious that Genocide Watch has defined them as genocide. They have largely been unrecognized by the UK, with no appropriate response. That is very dangerous because, as has been well said, every genocide which is not condemned is an encouragement to the perpetrator to continue genocidal policies with impunity,” Baroness Cox said.

She reminded that the International Association of Genocide Scholars raised similar urgent concerns in October, warning that “genocide of the Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh, and perhaps even Armenia, is a very real possibility.”

“Yet despite these warnings Her Majesty’s Government have chosen not to intervene to protect civilians. They continue to refuse to hold Turkey and Azerbaijan to account for their actions, despite clear evidence of past, recent and ongoing atrocities, choosing instead to define the crisis as a “problem on both sides”, in which Armenia is portrayed as equally guilty as Azerbaijan and Turkey. While war often involves crimes against humanity, and Armenia may have some culpability, there is absolutely no equivalence with the atrocities and war crimes perpetrated by Azerbaijan,” she stated.

“As the Armenian Foreign Minister said to us on a recent visit to Armenia: ‘Autocratic states have assessed how far they can get away with things. They have concluded that the “democratic world” is somewhere else. They have assessed the democratic world and they will therefore continue this policy, as they have learnt from this.’ There is therefore an urgent need to fulfill the commitment in Her Majesty’s gracious Speech to uphold human rights and to alleviate human suffering for the Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia,” Caroline Cox said.

In response to Cox’s concerns,Tariq Mahmood Ahmad, known as Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, repeated the false parity often voiced by the UK government, saying, “we are well aware of the allegations from both sides that war crimes have been committed. We have urged relevant authorities to investigate and understand the situation on the ground.”

http://asbarez.com/202644/baroness-cox-faults-uk-government-for-failing-to-address-bakus-aggression/?fbclid=IwAR0ApS0kqJnvaBKbvm0ZhAEvZ3cWolLXif92xXR6VafzBxEWg8DtweyuIXY

[Yervant1]

TASS, Russia

May 25 2021

One killed in skirmish at Armenian-Azerbaijani border

Earlier, the Armenian Defense Ministry reported a fire incident, registered near the settlement of Verin Shorzha

EREVAN, May 25. /TASS/. One Armenian serviceman was mortally wounded in a skirmish at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in the Gegharkunik Province, Armenian Defense Ministry announced Tuesday.

"An Armenian Armed Forces volunteer, Junior Sergeant V. Khurshudian was mortally wounded in a skirmish that broke out after the enemy opened fire in the border district of Verin Shorzha in the Gegharkunik Province," the Defense Ministry said.

Earlier, the Defense Ministry reported a fire contact, registered near the settlement of Verin Shorzha at about 13:20 Moscow time, adding that "the enemy has fired at the Armenian positions."

On Wednesday, the Armenian Defense Ministry announced that the Azerbaijani Armed Forces attempted to carry out "certain operations" in order to "adjust the border" in the Syunik Region. The Azerbaijani Forces reportedly stopped their operations after the Armenian Defense Ministry took reactive measures. Armenia views this incident as an attempt against its sovereignty. According to Pashinyan, the Azerbaijani forces traveled 3.5 km into Armenian territory. Later, Yerevan announced it contacted the Collective Security Treaty Organization over the border incident.

https://tass.com/world/1293691

[Yervant1]

Panorama, Armenia

May 25 2021

Dutch parliament passes resolution demanding withdrawal of Azerbaijan troops from Armenia

The House of Representatives of the Dutch parliament, the States General, overwhelmingly adopted a resolution calling on the government to make efforts for the European Union to demand the immediate withdrawal of the Azerbaijani troops from Armenia, the Armenian Embassy in the Netherlands reported.

“The House, following the debates, recording that the Azerbaijani troops have invaded Armenia’s territory and aiming to prevent a possible escalation of the conflict, calls on the government to induce the [European] Council to join French President Macron's demand that Azerbaijan withdraw its troops immediately.

"And proceeds to the issues on the agenda,” the resolution said.

https://www.panorama.am/en/news/2021/05/25/Dutch-parliament-Armenia/2508156

[Yervant1]

The fake sultan takes advantage of Armenian political infighting, simple as that. Menq mard biti chellanq!

 

Armenpress.com

Azerbaijan attempts to blackmail Armenia into giving up more, says senior Russian lawmaker

Save

Share

13:53, 25 May, 2021

YEREVAN, MAY 25, ARMENPRESS. Russian State Duma lawmaker Konstantin Zatulin believes that the status-quo at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border must be restored.

Speaking at an online press conference, Zatulin, a senior lawmaker and head of the Institute of CIS Countries, said that big efforts are required to restore the Armenian military’s defensibility and combat morale after the defeat in the 2020 war, as well as for making people believe that the country can defend itself with its own powers.

According to Zatulin, the ongoing developments in Armenia are a result of the society’s division, but this doesn’t anyhow justify Azerbaijan’s provocations, who is looking for the suitable moment. “Azerbaijan is attempting to gain some more advantages, wants to blackmail and obtain some things again. This is a totally transparent situation, it must be diagnosed. The status-quo must be restored,” he said.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

 

 

https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1053324.html?fbclid=IwAR1WYmjfZirQ9P4TrroOclU2aXbQu7TAo7ncGDYqfJ2tPeA2gx1dV9ZMQXY

 

 

[Yervant1]

TASS, Russia

May 26 2021

Azerbaijan tried to establish corridor on Armenian territory to Nakhichevan — Pashinyan

It is the area of 26-kilometers wide across the Armenian territory

YEREVAN, May 26. /TASS/. The incursion of Azerbaijani armed forces into the territory of Armenia, in the vicinity of the Syunik Region in the south of the country, was in pursuit of instigating a military conflict and paving a corridor to Nakhichevan, Armenia's Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Wednesday.

"I believe that Azerbaijan pursued the aim of instigating a military conflict and… with the use of their forces attempted to establish a corridor from the residential area of Sevlich [in the Syunik Region of Armenia] to Bichenek [Nakhichevan]," Pashinyan said, addressing a session of the Armenian Parliament today.

"This particular area is 26-kilometers wide and stretches across Armenian territory," Pashinyan added.

Earlier this week, the Defense Ministry of Armenia reported that an Armenian serviceman was fatally wounded in a shootout in the Gegharkunik region on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

Armenia's defense ministry said on May 12 that Azerbaijani armed forces had tried to carry out "certain activities" in the border area in Syunik Province in a bid to "adjust the border." Following retaliatory measures, the Azerbaijani side stopped its activities and agreed to hold talks to settle the situation.

Later on the same day, Pashinyan called a meeting of the country's Security Council, where he described the situation as an infringement of Armenia's territory. He said Azerbaijani troops had crossed Armenia's state border and moved 3.5 kilometers deep into its territory.

The sides have had several rounds of talks to settle the situation, with the latest one being held on May 16 and mediated by Russia.

Nagorho-Karabakh clashes

Clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia erupted on September 27, 2020, with intense battles raging in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. On November 9, 2020, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed a joint statement on a complete ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh.

According to the document, the Azeri and Armenian forces stopped at the positions that they had maintained, and Russian peacekeepers were deployed along the engagement line in Nagorno-Karabakh and along the Lachin Corridor that connects Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

 

https://tass.com/world/1294331

[Yervant1]

Public Radio of Armenia

May 26 2021

Armenia does not rule out the possibility of applying to the UN Security Council, acting PM says

While the pace of CSTO actions is not satisfying at this point, we will continue to work consistently together with our partners towards further clarification of the situation, Armenia’s acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at the National Assembly today.

“Azerbaijan’s initial intention has not been neutralized yet, and our partners need to be well-informed of that intention and express a clear stance on it,” Pashinyan said, adding that the CSTO and its member states are yet to clearly state that the Azerbaijan should withdraw its forces.

“While this potion is expressed on working level, they are yet to do that publicly,” the acting PM said.

As for the possibility of applying to the UN Security Council, Nikol Pashinyan said the issue has been under consideration from day one and continues to be on the agenda. He added, however, that when making such decisions, it’s necessary to have a certain framework of predictability, and do some preliminary work.

“We have never ruled out and do not rule out that we might chose that path, if it turns out that the CSTO tools or those of the Armenian-Russian joint group of forces are not enough for resolving the situation,” Pashinyan said.

 

https://en.armradio.am/2021/05/26/armenia-does-not-rule-out-the-possibility-of-applying-to-the-un-security-council-acting-pm-says/

[Yervant1]

 

Asbarez.com

 

Yerevan, Russian Peacekeepers Refute Azerbaijan’s Claims

May 26, 2021

http://asbarez.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Armen-Sarkissian-Syunik-1-scaled.jpeg

The Armenia-Azerbaijan border

Armenia’s Defense Ministry on Wednesday refuted claims made by Baku, which alleged that Armenian forces had been firing at Azerbaijani forces for three days before the killing of an Armenian soldier by Azerbaijani fire in Armenia’s Gegharkunik Province on Tuesday.

Since Azerbaijan breached Armenia’s sovereign border and advanced into Armenia’s Syunik and Gegharkunik provinces beginning on May 12, tensions in border communities, especially around the Sev Lidj (Black Lake) area have heightened, resulting in an attack Tuesday by Azerbaijani forces, as a result of which Junior Sergeant Gevorg Yurayi Khurshudyan was killed.

On Wednesday, Armenia’s Defense Ministry said a communique issued by the Azerbaijani defense ministry “is another miserable attempt to cover up Azerbaijan’s recent provocations against the sovereign territories of Armenia and Tuesday’s killing of Junior Sergeant Gevorg Khurshudyan.”

In its statement, Azerbaijan’s defense ministry claimed that Armenian forces had been firing on Azerbaijani positions for three days, prompting Armenia’s Defense Ministry to question the timing—and veracity—of Baku’s statement, which further alleged that Armenian forces also fired on Azerbaijani positions in Artsakh’s Shushi.

“The command of the Russian contingent carrying out a peacekeeping mission in Artsakh informed the Armenian MOD that no shots were fired in that direction,” said Armenia’s Defense Ministry.

“The MOD of Armenia reiterates that the Azerbaijani encroachments on the sovereign territories of Armenia are absolutely inadmissible, and demands Azerbaijan to leave the territory of Armenia immediately,” said the statement adding that Armenia “reserves the right to resolve the issue by any means—including the use of force.”

Speaking at the National Assembly on Wednesday, Armenia’s Acting Defense Minister Vagharshak Harutyunyan told lawmakers that Russian peacekeeping forces had also debunked Azerbaijan’s claims.

Harutyunyan said that he had contacted the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Karabakh, and it, too, dismissed the claims that Armenian forces had fired shots toward Shushi.

“The enemy is trying to cover up its own illegal actions. We clearly know the tactics of the Azerbaijani side,” added Harutyunyan.

http://asbarez.com/202771/yerevan-russian-peacekeepers-refute-azerbaijans-claims/?fbclid=IwAR0C1v12JH7fc2mbxMImkf1vU1wvP0d9BsUK3QNxaNOLQOtfD8wbplL-Ct8

[Yervant1]

 

Asbarez.com

 

China Supports Armenia’s Territorial Integrity and Sovereignty

http://asbarez.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/1053544.jpeg

Avet Adonts (second from left) is Armenia’s Deputy Foreign Minister during talks with China on May 26

China told Yerevan on Wednesday that it supports Armenia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The message was conveyed by China’s Deputy Foreign Minister Le Yucheng, who stressed that the complete implementation of the November 9 agreement can guarantee regional security and stability.

Le held talks with Armenia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Avet Adonts, who briefed his counterpart about Azerbaijan’s breach of Armenia’s border and subsequent incursion into Armenia’s sovereign territory.

Adonts stressed that Azerbaijan is refusing to implement its obligations under the November 9 agreement, adding that Armenian political prisoners are still being held captive by Baku. He also added that Azerbaijan was actively hindering international humanitarian organizations from entering Karabakh, while simultaneously destroying Armenian historical, cultural and religious monuments.

While discussing the expansion of Armenia-China cooperation, Adonts also thanked Le for 100,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines provided to Armenia by Beijing.

http://asbarez.com/202779/china-supports-armenias-territorial-integrity-and-sovereignty/?fbclid=IwAR203Tj3XFrDQ5JOABqQLhEl7i7K2ofgB3wBr6a8F54ETb4Ir0_t9Ma7qhU