Author: Raffi Khondkarian

We must start bringing back people who are professionals and know everything about troops because it will be impossible to ensure security without troops. This is what third President of Armenia, President of the Republican Party of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan said during a meeting with citizens.

In his turn, Artur Vanetsyan, who is first on the electoral list of the “I Have Honor” bloc, stated that there can’t be talks about any other issue, if the security issue isn’t solved, the army isn’t restored and the problem with border protection isn’t solved.

As a Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, the US is strongly committed to the principle of working with the parties to achieve a long-term political settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and urges the parties to return to the Minsk Group Co-Chairs-led talks as soon as possible.

In response to Tert.am’s question for an opinion on acting Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan’s proposal to overcome the crisis created after the appearance of Azerbaijani Armed Forces in Gegharkunik Province, an official of the US Department of State said the following:

“The US is concerned about the recent events that took place on the interstate border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, including the detention of a few Armenian servicemen by the Azerbaijani troops. We call on both parties to resolve the incident quickly and in peace. The US is ready to support these efforts.” The official also recalled the US State Department’s May 27 statement.

Azerbaijani troops have been in Armenia’s territory for over two weeks now. They have invaded in several directions and aren’t leaving. Moreover, incidents take place on a regular basis (gunshots were fired, an Armenian serviceman was killed, 6 Armenian servicemen were encircled in Gegharkunik Province and captured by Azerbaijani troops.

To resolve the crisis, acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan offered the international community and the President of Azerbaijan to pull out the troops of both parties and move them to the line of contact in the sector between Sotk of Gegharkunik Province and Khoznavar village of Syunik Province. He proposed to deploy observers of Russia or co-chairing countries of the OSCE Minsk Group, after which the borders will be adjusted along with those observers.

During the session of the coordinating council of chairmen of the committees on security and defense of the parliaments of member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) adjunct to the Council of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly, CSTO Deputy Secretary-General Valery Semerikov said the recent escalation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border requires the undertaking of urgent measures.

According to him, overall, the situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone has become stable after the trilateral statement on ceasefire signed by the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan on November 9, 2020. “Russian peacekeepers and the ongoing negotiation process are helping strengthen the prospect for long-term peace,” Semerikov said, adding that the recent escalation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border requires the undertaking of urgent measures, that is, “solutions to political diplomacy issues and then issues related to the demarcation and delimitation of the state border between Armenia and Azerbaijan”.

The participants of the session were also introduced to the “Military Political Situation in the Caucasus” report by Chairman of the Standing Committee on Defense and Security of the National Assembly of Armenia Andranik Kocharyan in which the latter assesses the situation in the areas of the Syunik Province of Armenia bordering Azerbaijan and underscores the inadmissibility of encroachments on the territorial integrity of a member state of the CSTO.