Author: Markos Nalchajian

                                        Thursday, 

Pashinian Sends Condolences To Macron Over Terrorist Attack In France


Nice, France - French security forces are outside a church where a stabbing 
attack took place on October 29

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian offered his condolences to French 
President Emmanuel Macron over a terrorist attack on October 29 that left at 
least three people killed and several injured in southern France.

One of the victims, a woman, was beheaded after a knife attack at a church in 
Nice.

In his message Pashinian said that Armenia condemns terrorism in all its forms 
and manifestations.

“It is more than obvious that extremism and fanaticism have no justification or 
moral excuse,” Pashinian said.

“The people of Armenia share the pain and anger of the fraternal people of 
France. We express our deep condolences and sympathy to victims’ families and 
friends,” he added.

The latest terrorist attack comes amid increased tensions between France and 
Turkey as well as other predominantly Muslim countries over the publication of 
the Prophet Muhammad cartoons in the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

About two weeks ago a French teacher was decapitated outside his school in a 
Parisian suburb by an attacker who wanted to punish him for showing pupils 
cartoons of the prophet in a civics lesson.

After that attack Macron and his government vowed a crackdown on Islamic 
extremism, stressing that freedom of speech is one of the highest values in 
France. This stance has drawn anger from the Muslim world where many leaders, 
including Turkey’s Erdogan, have accused Macron of Islamophobia.



Armenia, Azerbaijan Trade Blame Over Stalled Talks


RUSSIA -- Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanian (right) and Azerbaijani 
Foregn Minister Jeyhun Bayramov (left) meet with their Russian counterpart 
Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, October 9, 2020

Authorities in Yerevan and Baku have accused each other of torpedoing 
negotiations aimed at finding ways of ending hostilities and de-escalating the 
current crisis in and around Nagorno-Karabakh.
In an interview with Russia’s RIA Novosti on Thursday Armenian Foreign Minister 
Zohrab Mnatsakanian claimed that Azerbaijan refuses to work constructively on 
the parameters of a ceasefire, instead pressing ahead with military operations.

The Armenian minister said that his joint statement with his Russian and 
Azerbaijani counterparts, Sergei Lavrov and Jeyhun Bayramov, made on October 10 
constituted a roadmap to achieve that goal. He said that the first two points 
concerning the ceasefire and the need to agree on its specific parameters, 
including the exchange of bodies of killed soldiers and prisoners of war, must 
be fulfilled immediately and without preconditions.

“The main obstacle in the negotiations has been Azerbaijan’s unwillingness to 
commit itself to a sustainable and verifiable ceasefire. Azerbaijan refuses to 
create verification mechanisms, its long-standing position is to avoid a 
sustainable ceasefire and leave room for mutual accusations,” Mnatsakanian said.

The Armenian minister said that consultations on verification mechanisms are 
currently underway between the defense ministries of the Russian Federation, 
Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“For now, Azerbaijan refuses to constructively engage in the development of the 
parameters of the ceasefire and continues large-scale military operations,” the 
Armenian diplomat added.

Meanwhile, in an interview with the same news agency Bayramov accused Armenia of 
torpedoing the talks. He claimed that Yerevan is not interested in a negotiated 
settlement of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“Armenia grossly violated all agreements on an immediate humanitarian truce. 
Obviously, Armenia is not interested in a negotiated settlement of the 
conflict,” he said.

The top diplomats of Armenia and Azerbaijan made the remarks ahead of their 
expected separate meetings with the Russian, American and French co-chairmen of 
the OSCE Minsk Group, an international format spearheading international efforts 
on resolving the long-running conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Meanwhile, speaking on the sidelines of an annual investment forum, Russia 
Calling, in Moscow on October 29, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged 
the intricate nature of the conflict around Nagorno-Karabakh, saying that “it 
has no simple solutions.”

“What or where is the long-term settlement? It is in finding a balance of 
interests that would suit both sides – both the Azerbaijani people, whom we 
treat with unwavering respect, and the interests of the Armenian people,” Putin 
said.

Last week Putin said that Moscow believes that the death toll from the fighting 
in Nagorno-Karabakh that broke out on September 27 was nearing 5,000.

As of October 29, the de facto military authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh have 
confirmed the deaths of 1,163 ethnic Armenian servicemen. Azerbaijan does not 
disclose its military losses.



Bodies Of 29 Killed Soldiers Handed Over To Armenia


The bodies of 29 Armenian servicemen killed in action during the ongoing 
hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh have been handed over to the Armenian side, 
Armenia’s Defense Ministry said on Thursday.
According to Defense Ministry spokesperson Shushan Stepanian, the transfer took 
place on October 29 “with the exceptional mediation efforts of the Russian 
Federation, and with the participation of the field team of the Personal 
Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and the International Committee 
of the Red Cross (ICRC).”

She said that at the same time the ICRC efforts have resulted in one civilian’s 
repatriation to Armenia.

“In its turn, the Armenian side, adhering to the arrangements reached within the 
framework of the humanitarian ceasefire, once again reiterates its readiness to 
hand over to the Azerbaijani side the bodies of Azerbaijani servicemen in the 
territory of Artsakh [Nagorno-Karabakh – ed.], and to start the process of 
recovery of bodies in the inter-positional zone throughout the entire 
Artshakh-Azerbaijan frontline of hostilities, as well as exchange of information 
on POWs and their respective handover in future,” Stepanian wrote in a Facebook 
post.

Earlier today the de facto Defense Ministry of Nagorno-Karabakh confirmed the 
deaths of 51 more ethnic Armenian soldiers, taking its military death toll to 
1,116 since fighting with Azerbaijani forces broke out on September 27.

Azerbaijan does not disclose its military losses, but authorities in Baku say 
the fighting has killed 69 civilians and wounded 322. Armenian authorities in 
Nagorno-Karabakh have also reported dozens of civilians killed and wounded since 
the start of the hostilities.



Iranian Official Calls Minsk Group ‘Inefficient’

        • Gevorg Stamboltsian

Abbas Araghchi, a political deputy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, 
has been tasked by the Iranian president with unveiling a peace plan for the 
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to the warring side

A senior Iranian diplomat tasked by his government with unveiling a peace plan 
for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to the warring side has described the efforts 
of the current international group seeking a negotiated settlement as 
inefficient.

“The Minsk Group [of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe] 
has shown its inefficiency,” said Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister 
and the Iranian president’s special envoy for Nagorno-Karabakh, in a statement 
made in Moscow on October 29.

Earlier this week, Iran announced it had drawn up a plan to resolve the 
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the hope of stopping fighting between Armenian and 
Azerbaijani forces continuing along its northwestern border.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif did not divulge any details of the 
plan. Zarif’s deputy Abbas Araghchi reportedly travelled to Baku earlier this 
week to submit the peace proposals to Azerbaijan’s leadership. Tehran said the 
plan would be presented in Moscow and Yerevan as well.

“It has been 30 years since the Minsk Group was formed, but it has not been able 
to find a long-term solution to the problem,” said Araghchi, as quoted by the 
Iranian embassy in Moscow, speaking about the group co-chaired by the United 
States, Russia and France.

Each country of the co-chairing troika tried to broker a ceasefire in the 
conflict zone earlier in October, but in each case it collapsed within hours 
after taking effect, with Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh’s ethnic Armenian 
forces accusing each other of failing to live up to the agreement.

Araghchi arrived in the Russian capital from Baku, where he reportedly met with 
the Azerbaijani leadership on October 28.

“My meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev lasted for about an hour and 
a half. Azerbaijani officials have a positive attitude towards Tehran’s plan to 
establish lasting peace in the region,” the Iranian official said, as quoted by 
the IRNA news agency.

Araghchi added that according to the plan drafted in Tehran, ceasefire is to be 
established after certain initial steps. The Iranian diplomat did not elaborate.

The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan are expected to hold meetings 
with the Minsk Group co-chairs this week in a fresh effort to reach ceasefire 
and discuss further settlement of the long-running conflict.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that Moscow believes the death 
toll from the fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh that broke out on September 27 was 
nearing 5,000.



Armenia, Azerbaijan Accuse Each Other Of Targeting Civilians


Nagorno-Karabakh - Aftermaths of a missile attack on the Stepanakert Maternity 
Hospital, 28Oct,2020

Armenians and Azerbaijanis have again accused each other of targeting civilians 
as deadly fighting continues unabated in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone.

Armenia and Armenia-backed ethnic Armenian authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh said 
that the region’s capital city, Stepanakert, and other towns, including nearby 
Shushi (Shusha) and Martakert in the north-east, have come under bombardment and 
rocket fire of the Azerbaijani military, causing casualties among the civilian 
population in recent days.

Nagorno-Karabakh’s ethnic Armenian Defense Army said that Azerbaijan has used 
Smerch multiple launch rocket systems in shelling the towns overnight.

“This is yet another war crime committed by the Azerbaijani leadership. The 
criminal leadership of Azerbaijan bears the whole responsible for further 
escalation of the situation,” it claimed in a statement released on October 29.

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry in its turn claimed that Armenian forces 
shelled the Azerbaijani districts of Barda and Goranboy located north of 
Nagorno-Karabakh.

The de facto Defense Ministry of Nagorno-Karabakh said on October 29 that 51 
more casualties have taken its military death toll to 1,116 since fighting with 
Azerbaijani forces erupted on September 27.

Azerbaijan does not disclose its military losses, but authorities in Baku say 
the fighting has killed 69 civilians and wounded 322. Armenian authorities in 
Nagorno-Karabakh have also reported dozens of civilians killed and wounded since 
the start of the hostilities.

The reports of fresh fighting and targeting of civilians came three days after 
another ceasefire agreed by the warring sides collapsed.

The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan are expected to hold meetings 
with the co-chairs of the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and 
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Geneva, Switzerland, this week in a new effort 
to reach ceasefire and discuss further settlement of the long-running conflict.

The United States, France, and Russia are the co-chairs of the Minsk Group, 
which has been the main mediator in the conflict.

The Minsk Group said the meetings would be held “to discuss, reach agreement on, 
and begin implementation, in accordance with a timeline to be agreed upon, of 
all steps necessary to achieve a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh 
conflict.”

The meetings are originally scheduled for October 29. But through his 
spokesperson today Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said that his 
meeting with the mediators had been rescheduled for October 30.



Biden Urges Trump To ‘Get Involved Personally’ To Stop War In Karabakh

        • Harry Tamrazian

U.S. -- Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks 
at a drive-in rally at Cellairis Amphitheatre in Atlanta, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, who is the Democratic candidate in next week’s 
presidential elections in the United States, has called on President Donald 
Trump to “get personally involved” to put an end to the ongoing hostilities in 
Nagorno-Karabakh.

In his fourth announcement on the war that broke out between Azerbaijan and 
ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh on September 27 Biden also stressed that 
Washington should be leading a diplomatic effort to end the fighting.

“Following the collapse of the ceasefire announced by Secretary of State [Mike] 
Pompeo on October 25, a large-scale humanitarian disaster is looming for the 
people of Nagorno-Karabakh, who have already suffered too much and need to have 
their security protected. After a month of fighting, it is long past time for 
President Trump to directly engage the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and 
Turkey to push for immediate de-escalation and stop the advance of Azerbaijani 
troops into Nagorno-Karabakh,” Biden said on Wednesday.

He also called on the administration to enforce Section 907 of the Freedom 
Support Act that bans direct aid to Azerbaijan, including military aid.

“While he brags about his deal-making skills at campaign rallies, Trump has yet 
to get involved personally to stop this war. The administration must fully 
implement and not waive requirements under section 907 of the Freedom Support 
Act to stop the flow of military equipment to Azerbaijan, and call on Turkey and 
Russia to stop fueling the conflict with the supply of weapons and, in the case 
of Turkey, mercenaries,” said Biden.

“The United States should be leading a diplomatic effort to end the fighting, 
together with our European partners, and push for international humanitarian 
assistance to end the suffering; under my administration that is exactly what we 
will do,” pledged Biden.

The Trump administration brokered a short-lived ceasefire between Armenia and 
Azerbaijan when the two countries’ foreign ministers visited Washington late 
last week.

The third Armenian-Azerbaijani ceasefire during the current hostilities 
collapsed within hours after entering into force on the morning of October 26. 
The next day, President Trump himself acknowledged that the ceasefire was not 
holding. According to Reuters, Trump expressed optimism that the two sides will 
work things out but offered no other details.

The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan are expected to hold meetings 
with the three co-chairs of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in 
Europe’s Minsk Group representing the United States, Russia and France in 
Geneva, Switzerland, later today to discuss ways of de-escalating the fighting 
in which hundreds of lives on both sides have already been lost.


Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2020 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

 

The #Aid4Artsakh matching gift campaign for humanitarian relief in Artsakh and Armenia was intended to generate $5 million in donor support over the course of six weeks with a commitment from AGBU to match it dollar for dollar up to that amount. Yet the swift and overwhelming response from all corners of the Armenian World met that goal in just 4 days, thereby completing the matching phase of the fundraising effort as of midnight October 9, 2020. 

The donations received by this time totaled $5,400,000, which added to AGBU’s $5,000,000 match brings the total to the $10,400,000 million to be transferred to All-Armenian Fund. While any new gifts received will not qualify for a match, the donations will also be transferred to the Fund.

The proceeds from this drive will help support the life-sustaining humanitarian assistance for civilians and life-saving emergency medical equipment. 

“This instantaneous and organic outpouring of support sends a powerful and heartfelt message to all those in harm’s way or with family members defending the nation on the frontlines,” stated AGBU President Berge Setrakian. “It says ‘You are not alone. We rise together as one Armenian Nation.’”

In response to the news, All Armenian Fund Executive Director said, “We can’t thank AGBU enough for initiating the $5 million matching gift opportunity through its own assets and for deploying every tool in its global communications arsenal to reach old and new donors far and wide in a time-warp speed.”

To continue delivering humanitarian support for the people of Armenia and Artsakh, first time and existing donors can direct their gifts to himnadram.org or agbu.org/aid4artsakh.

Read this press release in the following languages:

Armenian (Eastern)
Armenian (Western)
French

The Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) is the world’s largest non-profit organization devoted to upholding the Armenian heritage through educational, cultural and humanitarian programs. Each year, AGBU is committed to making a difference in the lives of 500,000 people across Armenia, Artsakh and the Armenian diaspora.  Since 1906, AGBU has remained true to one overarching goal: to create a foundation for the prosperity of all Armenians. To learn more visit www.agbu.org. 

This email was sent to [email protected]

Armenian General Benevolent Union, 55 East 59th Street, New York, New York 10022, USA

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                                        Wednesday, 

Russia In Fresh Crisis Talks With Armenia, Azerbaijan


NAGORN-KARABAKH -- A serviceman of Karabakh's Defence Army fires an artillery 
piece towards Azeri positions, September 28, 2020

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov again spoke with his Armenian and 
Azerbaijani counterparts by phone on Wednesday as Moscow kept pressing for a 
halt to fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh that raged for a fourth day.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that during his separate phone calls with 
Armenia’s Zohrab Mnatsakanian and Azerbaijan’s Jeyhun Bayramov, Lavrov urged the 
two sides to immediately cease fire and resume negotiations as soon as possible. 
He also reaffirmed his readiness to host a trilateral meeting of the ministers 
in Moscow.

Lavrov already called Mnatsakanian and Bayramov hours after the outbreak on 
Sunday of the worst hostilities in the Karabakh conflict zone since 1994.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said, meanwhile, that Baku will halt the 
hostilities involving tens of thousands of troops and many tanks and artillery 
systems if Armenia agrees to “unconditionally, fully and immediately leave our 
lands.”

“This condition remains in force, and if Armenia’s government fulfills it the 
hostilities will stop … and peace will come to our region,” Aliyev said during a 
visit to a military hospital in Baku.


AZERBAIJAN -- Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and his wife Mehriban visit the 
Central Military Clinical Hospital of the Defense Ministry to meet with Azeri 
service members, who were wounded during clashes over Nagorno-Karabakh.

Pashinian said on Tuesday that Baku has failed to achieve its military 
objectives in Karabakh. “I hope this will make Azerbaijan realize that there is 
no military solution to this conflict,” he told a Russian TV channel.

According to the Armenian Foreign Ministry, Mnatsakanian discussed with Lavrov 
“Turkey’s direct military-political involvement” in the continuing fighting 
along the Armenian-Azerbaijani “line of contact” in Karabakh.

Mnatsakanian also reiterated Armenian concerns about the reported deployment in 
Azerbaijan of Turkish-backed mercenaries from Syria. The Azerbaijani army denies 
the presence of such fighters within its ranks.


ARMENIA -- An ethnic Armenian soldier, who was wounded in fighting with Azeri 
forces over Nagorno-Karabakh, is carried on a stretcher after being transported 
by a helicopter to Erebouni Medical Center in Yerevan, .

The Armenian military claimed throughout the day that F-16 fighter jets and 
combat drones of the Turkish Air Force joined Azerbaijani warplanes in striking 
civilian and military targets across Karabakh. Karabakh officials said three 
civilian residents of the northern Karabakh town of Martakert were killed in one 
of those air strikes.

Both Ankara and Baku deny any Turkish involvement in the Azerbaijani military 
operations. Aliyev on Wednesday thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan 
for his “resolute and brotherly stance” and “tough statements” in support of 
Azerbaijan.

Commenting on the Turkish role in the escalation of the Karabakh conflict, 
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian military officials are “very 
closely monitoring developments” and “meticulously analyzing all information” 
coming from on the frontlines.

“We disagree with them [the Turks,]” Russian news agencies quoted Peskov as 
saying. “As I said yesterday, one must not add fuel to the fire.”


NAGORNO KARABAKH -- A still image released 29 September by the Armenian Defense 
Ministry shows an explosion during military clashes along the Line of Contact 
around Karabakh.
The United States, France and other Western powers have also been trying to stop 
the Karabakh war.

U.S. National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien phoned Erdogan’s top aide, Ibrahim 
Kalin, as part of those efforts. The White House told RFE/RL that O’Brien 
stressed the importance of restoring the ceasefire regime in Karabakh and 
restarting Armenian-Azerbaijani negotiations mediated by the U.S., Russia and 
France.

According to Erdogan’s office, Kalin made clear that Ankara will continue to 
strongly support Azerbaijan and press Armenia to “pull its troops out of the 
occupied territories.”

“There is no military solution to this dispute,” O’Brien tweeted on Monday. 
“This violence must stop now, before more lives are unnecessarily lost.”



Iran Wants ‘Urgent End’ To Violence In Karabakh


IRAN -- Iranian President Hassan Rohani delivers his United Nations General 
Assembly speech online from the capital Tehran, September 22, 2020

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani added his voice to international calls for an 
end to the hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh and spoke out against “any foreign 
intervention in this matter” during a phone conversation with Prime Minister 
Nikol Pashinian on Wednesday.
Rouhani was quoted by his office as telling Pashinian that the region “cannot 
withstand instability and a new war."

"It is important for us to stop this conflict and we expect the two countries to 
take a step in this direction with tact and restraint," he said, referring to 
Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Rouhani said Iran has friendly relations with both South Caucasus nations and 
stands ready to play “any constructive role” in easing tensions between them. 
"We wish an urgent end to the conflict and we should all seek to resolve issues 
in the region through politics and international norms," he added.

The Iranian president was also reported to say: “Any foreign intervention in 
this matter will not only not help resolve the problem but also prolong … the 
situation and make it more complicated.”

It was not clear if he referred to Turkey’s vehement support for Azerbaijan 
which has led Armenia to accuse Ankara of participating in the continuing 
fighting on Azerbaijan’s side.

The official Armenian readout of the phone call said Pashinian discussed the 
“direct Turkish involvement” with Rouhani. “Prime Minister Pashinian presented 
some details of that,” it said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called his Armenian and 
Azerbaijani counterparts following the outbreak on Sunday of the large-scale 
hostilities along the Karabakh “line of contact” adjacent to Iran. Zarif 
reportedly urged both sides to restore the ceasefire regime and resume peace 
talks.



France’s Macron Deplores Turkey’s ‘Dangerous’ Rhetoric On Karabakh


LITHUANIA -- French President Emmanuel Macron gives a speech as he is granted an 
honorary doctorate of the University in Vilnius, 

French President Emmanuel Macron criticized on Wednesday Turkey’s “warlike” 
statements on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, saying that they are encouraging 
Azerbaijan to continue hostilities in the conflict zone.

“I have noted Turkey’s political declarations [in favor of Azerbaijan] which I 
think are inconsiderate and dangerous,” Macron told a news conference in Latvia.

“France remains extremely concerned by the warlike messages Turkey had in the 
last hours, which essentially remove any of Azerbaijan’s inhibitions in 
reconquering Nagorno-Karabakh. And that we won’t accept,” he said, according to 
the Reuters news agency.

Macron also said he will discuss the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin 
on Wednesday evening and with U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday. The 
French leader spoke with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and 
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev by phone earlier this week.

Ankara rejected the criticism and accused France of siding with Armenia in the 
Karabakh conflict. “France’s solidarity with Armenia is tantamount to supporting 
Armenian occupation in Azerbaijan,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu 
was quoted by the Anatolia news agency as saying.


Turkey -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Azerbaijan's Foreign 
Minister Jeyhun Bayramov (L) and Defence Minister Zakir Hasanov in Ankara, 
August 11, 2020.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip has blamed Armenia for the latest escalation and 
voiced strong support for Azerbaijan’s military operations in Karabakh. 
Successive Turkish governments have unconditionally backed Azerbaijan throughout 
the conflict.

Macron also said that Paris has no proof at this stage of direct Turkish 
involvement in the large-scale fighting along the Armenian-Azerbaijani “line of 
contact” around Karabakh which broke out on Sunday.

Armenia accuses the Turks of participating in the continuing hostilities on the 
Azerbaijani side with fighter jets, combat drones, military instructors and even 
pro-Turkish Islamist fighters recruited in Syria. It says that the Turkish 
involvement is destabilizing the entire region.


NAGORNO-KARABAKH -- Servicemen of Karabakh's Defence Army wave while riding in 
the back of a truck on the way to the town of Martakert, .

The Armenian Foreign Ministry insisted on Wednesday that one of the Turkish F-16 
jets shot down an Armenian warplane in Armenia’s airspace on Tuesday. It said 
that this and other Turkish warplanes deployed in Azerbaijan in early August 
“have been providing air support” to Azerbaijani army units fighting in Karabakh.

“We strongly condemn Turkey’s provocative actions and demand the immediate 
withdrawal of the Turkish armed forces, including the air force, from the 
conflict zone,” the ministry added in a statement.

Ankara denies downing the Armenian Su-25 aircraft. The Azerbaijani Defense 
Ministry has also dismissed the Armenian claims.

The Armenian Defense Ministry expressed on Wednesday readiness to provide the 
international community with evidence in support of the claims.



UN Security Council Urges Halt To Karabakh Fighting

        • Heghine Buniatian

The United Nations Security Council meets at United Nations Headquarters in 
Manhattan, New York, U.S., February 28, 2020.

The United Nations Security Council called late on Tuesday for an immediate end 
to hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh and unconditional resumption of 
Armenian-Azerbaijani peace talks.

The council said after a closed-door session in New York that its 15 member 
states “strongly condemn the use of force and regret the loss of life and the 
toll on the civilian population.”

“Security Council members voiced support for the call by the [UN] Secretary 
General on the sides to immediately stop fighting, de-escalate tensions and 
return to meaningful negotiations without delay,” it said in a statement.

“Security Council members expressed their full support for the central role of 
the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs and urge the sides to work closely with them for 
an urgent resumption of dialogue without preconditions,” added the statement.

The Minsk Group is co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France, three of 
the council’s five permanent members. The mediating powers have also expressed 
concern about the dramatic escalation of the Karabakh conflict in separate 
statements made in recent days.

The Security Council meeting was reportedly initiated by Estonia. Armenia’s and 
Azerbaijan’s ambassadors to the UN did not attend it. The council had not 
discussed the Karabakh dispute since 1993.

Yerevan and Baku blame each other for the outbreak early on Sunday of 
large-scale fighting along the “line of contact” around Karabakh which has left 
dozens and possibly hundreds of soldiers dead.

In separate interviews with a Russian TV channel aired earlier on Tuesday, 
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev 
also accused each other of obstructing peace process.

“The Armenian prime minister publicly declares that Karabakh is [part of] 
Armenia, period. In this case, what kind of negotiating process can we talk 
about?” Aliyev said.

Pashinian stated, for his part, that the Azerbaijani offensive in Karabakh has 
failed. “Azerbaijan’s armed forces … have failed to achieve their objective,” he 
said. “I hope this will make Azerbaijan realize that there is no military 
solution to this conflict.”

The hostilities continued on the night from Tuesday and Wednesday and in the 
following hours. Both sides reported heavy artillery fire at northern sections 
of the “line of contact.”

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in the morning that Armenian forces are 
shelling the Goranboy district just north of Karabakh. Karabakh’s 
Armenian-backed army said, meanwhile, that Azerbaijani warplanes and drones are 
firing rockets at its frontline positions in the mountainous area.


Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2020 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.