21:19, 9 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS. Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has announced that the Nagorno Karabakh conflict has no military solution, adding that Moscow doesn’t share the opinion of Ankara on the matter, reports RIA Novosti. “We have clearly stated our approach on the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. As you have probably heard, Ankara has repeatedly made other statements on the matter. I can only reaffirm Russia’s stance that our country doesn’t support the solution of this crisis by force, and we seek and call on the sides to immediately stop the hostilities”, Zakharova said.
Category: 2020
Downing Russian helicopter in Armenia is an attack against both Armenia and Russia – PM’s advisor
Downing Russian helicopter in Armenia is an attack against both Armenia and Russia – PM’s advisor
22:35, 9 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS. Vagharshak Harutyunyan, Chief Adviser to the Prime Minister of Armenia, assesses the downing of the Russian Mi-24 helicopter in the sovereign territory of Armenia an obvious act of aggression, Harutyunyan told ARMENPRESS.
”The downing of the Mi-24 helicopter of Russian aerospace forces in the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia is an obvious aggression and attack against both Armenia and Russia. The Azerbaijani Republic could clearly see that the helicopter was flying in the Armenian territory, posing no danger to them. Despite this fact, they used air defense system and destroyed the helicopter.
On the other hand, the destroyed helicopter belonged to the Russian 102nd base, while the attack against helicopters and aircrafts is considered as an attack against the country, in this case Russia”, Harutyunyan said.
The advisor to the PM says it’s necessary to investigate Turkey’s participation in the attack against the helicopter of Armenia’s ally, Russia, since the helicopter was downed from Nakhichevan, which is under the Turkish influence.
”It’s obvious that the direction of the flight of the helicopter could not be assessed as a threat for the Azerbaijani-Turkish side, and no explanation in this regard is not convincing. This has similarities with the Turkish style of downing the Russian Su-24 in Syria”, Harutyunyan concluded.
CSTO expresses deep concern over downing Russian Mi-24 helicopter
22:56, 9 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS. The CSTO has expressed serious concerns over the destruction of the Mi-24 Russian helicopter by the Azerbaijani armed forces, ARMENPRESS reports, citing Ria Novosti, press secretary of the CSTO Vladimir Zaynetdinov said.
The press secretary of the organization expressed regret for that the escalation of the NK conflict has led to sad consequences.
”We express our serious concern for the incident. We offer condolences to relatives and friends of the victims. We should wait for the results of the investigation to find out where the shooting was from”, Zaynetdinov said.
We are convinced the use of force against Russian Armed Forces will receive adequate response – MFA
23:46, 9 November, 2020
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS. The Foreign Ministry of Armenia has issued a statement of the destruction of the Russian MI-24 helicopter in the Armenian air space by Azerbaijani armed forces. As ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of MFA Armenia, the statement runs as follows,
”On November 9, at around 6:00 p.m., Russian Mi-24 helicopter was shot down on the territory of the Republic of Armenia by a man-portable air-defense system fired from the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan. According to the preliminary data, two are killed and one wounded resulting from the attack.
We express our deepest condolences to the Russian Federation, to the families of the victims and their comrades.
Notably, that tragic incident occurred far away from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone, in a place, where no military clashes have been recorded during this period. From this perspective the claims of the Azerbaijani side and attempts to justify it are false and groundless.
We strongly condemn this assault towards the Russian Armed Forces by the Azerbaijani armed forces within the sovereign territory of Armenia.
We are convinced that the use of force against the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation will receive an adequate response”.
Azerbaijan fires rockets against Artsakh’s Stepanakert, injuring civilians
Azerbaijan fires rockets against Artsakh’s Stepanakert, injuring civilians
01:07,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijan fired rockets against Artsakh’s capital city Stepanakert, injuring a number of civilians, ARMENPRESS reports the State Service of the Emergency Situations of Artsakh informs.
”Firing prohibited weapons against peaceful settlements and civilians is a war crime. Stepanakert is again under the target of the adversary. Artsakh’s capital is under bombardment. There are injured among the civilian population.
Firefighters are extinguishing fire in different parts of the city’’, reads the statement.
Armenian, Russian, Azerbaijani leaders sign declaration on stopping war
01:57,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. Prime MInister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan wrote on his Facebook page that he signed a declaration with the Russian and Azerbaijani Presidents on stopping the war at 01:00. ARMENPRESS reports Pashinyan wrote,
”Dear compatriots, sisters and brothers, I have made a difficult, extremely difficult decision for personally me and all of us.
I have signed a declaration with the Presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan on stopping the war starting from 01:00. The text of the declaration that has already been published is extremely painful for personally me and for our people.
I made that discussion based on a deep analysis of the military situation and the assessments of the individuals best understanding that situation, also based on the conviction that in the existing situation this is the best POSSIBLE outcome. I will address the nation in the nearest days about all this.
This is not a victory, but there is no defeat as long as you do not think of yourself as defeated. We will never think of ourselves as defeated and this must become the starting point of our national unity, era of revival.
We have to analyze the years of our independence, plan our future for not repeating our mistakes of the past.
I kneel before all our martyrs. I kneel before all our soldiers, officers, generals and volunteers who defended and defend their Motherland sacrificing their lives. They saved the Armenians of Artsakh with their selflessness.
We struggled to the last and we will win. Artsakh is standing.
Long live Armenia, Long live Artsakh’’.
Azerbaijan preparing offensive in Martuni and Karmir Shuka direction
01:22,
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 10, ARMENPRESS. The Azerbaijani armed forces carry out artillery and rocket strikes, as well as use numerous drones in all the main directions of the front line, targeting also civilian settlements, civilian infrastructures and even civilian buses, ARMENPRESS was informed from the Facebook page of Artsakh’s Defense Army.
‘’The adversary is using artillery along the entire front line, preparing an offensive in Martuni and Karmir Shuka directions. The Defense Army units keep control of the operative situation, taking all necessary measures for keeping future developments under control’’, reads the statement.
TURKISH press: Russian helicopter shot down in Armenia near border with Azerbaijan
Russian Ansat and Mi-24 helicopters fly at the MAKS 2019 air show in Zhukovsky, outside Moscow, Russia, Aug. 27, 2019. (File photo by Sputnik/Aleksey Nikolskyi/Kremlin via Reuters)
The Russian military says a Russian Mi-24 attack helicopter was shot down in Armenia’s Ararat province, near the border with Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan region, killing two crew members.
Azerbaijan admitted later in the day that it had shot down the helicopter on its border with Armenia and apologized.
“The Azerbaijani side offers an apology to the Russian side in connection with this tragic incident,” the foreign ministry said in a statement, adding the move was an accident and “not aimed against” Moscow.
Azerbaijan is ready to pay “appropriate compensation,” the ministry added.
The helicopter was flying close to the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan at a low altitude in the darkness during active military battles, it said.
The flight was being carried out outside the radar detection zone of the air defense system.
No helicopters of Russian air forces had been previously observed in the area, it added.
Azerbaijani forces decided to open fire during active fighting with the Armenian side.
Baku also extended its deepest condolences to the families of the crew members killed and wished a speedy recovery to the injured.
Russia maintains a permanent military presence in Armenia as part of a post-Soviet alliance. Russia intends to conduct a thorough investigation of the incident, which it says occurred in a mountainous area near the Armenian village of Yeraskh.
The helicopter appears to have been shot down by a portable surface-to-air missile fired from the ground, the Russian Defence Ministry says in a statement.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been engaged in intense fighting for more than a month over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. More than 1,000 people have been reported killed in that conflict.
TURKISH press: Baku to invite Turkish troops if any country threatens Azerbaijan, Aliyev says
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev gestures as he addresses the nation during his visit to the Alley of Martyrs in Baku, Azerbaijan on Nov. 8, 2020. (Reuters Photo)
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said he will invite Turkish troops to Azerbaijan if any country threatens Baku, amid the ongoing conflict in the Armenian-occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region.
“We have urged all countries, including our neighbors and non-neighbors, to stay away from this conflict,” Aliyev said, adding that Azerbaijan is fighting against Armenia on internationally recognized Azerbaijani lands.
Aliyev said he does not think Turkish assistance will be necessary, but there is an agreement with Turkey, which was signed years ago, foreseeing military assistance in times of aggression.
“If Azerbaijan faces aggression and needs military support from the Turkish army, we can use this option and invite them over,” Aliyev was quoted as saying.
Aliyev’s statement came a day after the Azerbaijani military liberated the strategic city of Shusha after 28 years of occupation by Armenia.
Shusha holds critical importance in the overall liberation of the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region.
The town has a significant military value since it is located on strategic heights about 10 kilometers (6 miles) south of the region’s capital over Khankendi (Stepanakert) and on the road linking the city with Armenian territory.
About 20% of Azerbaijan’s territory – including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions – have been under Armenian occupation for nearly three decades.
While world powers have called for a sustainable cease-fire, Turkey has supported Baku’s right to self-defense and demanded the withdrawal of Armenia’s occupying forces.
Multiple U.N. resolutions also call for the unconditional withdrawal of the invading forces.
Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in a bitter conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh since Armenian separatists backed by Yerevan seized control of the mountainous province in a 1990s war that left 30,000 people dead.
Nagorno-Karabakh’s self-declared independence has not been recognized internationally, even by Armenia, and it remains a part of Azerbaijan under international law.
It has been the heaviest fighting since a 1994 cease-fire erupted on Sept. 27 and has persisted despite intense diplomatic efforts to bring it to a halt.
The two sides have three times agreed to for a cease-fire – the latest in a U.S.-brokered deal over the weekend, but the truces have all quickly fallen apart.
The fighting has intensified in recent days with renewed shelling and rocket attacks on civilian areas.
Asbarez: Political Forces in Armenia Issue Joint Announcement
November 9, 2020
Leaders of political parties gather to discuss next steps
The Armenian people, parliamentary and extra-parliamentary political forces, have combined their potential to resist the Turkish-Azeri aggression against the two Armenian states.
Throughout this war, we have presented several proposals to authorities urging them to make a breakthrough on political, diplomatic and military fronts, including proposals for meetings aimed at rectifying the situation, which have remained unanswered and unimplemented.
The war is intense, and the losses are irreversible and heavy. As a state and people, we are facing a decisive juncture that demands resolute decisions and actions. But the steps taken by the political leadership do not adequately meet the threat of survival facing our nation.
In this period, the government has revealed its clear inability to overcome internal and external challenges. The human and territorial losses and the unproductive relations between Armenia and its allies, primarily the Russian Federation, expose the evident bankruptcy of the current regime.
The entire responsibility for this situation lies with the political leadership, which did not let go of its infallibility complex, placing the two Armenian states under harsh realities and Artsakh under threat of grave territorial losses. Therefore, the leadership has been deprived of the political and moral basis to represent the Armenian people.
To prevent irreversible losses, we demand:
The early, voluntary, and smooth removal of the parties responsible for the creation of the catastrophic situation; Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his administration, and the urgent creation of a new executive body with the ability to make breakthroughs in the current reality and resolve political-military problems.
Dear Armenian compatriots,
At this pivotal moment, our demand is dictated by the imperative of the existence of the two Armenian states and with the confidence that under this new scenario the unbreakable Armenian army and the united Armenian people will secure a victorious breakthrough on the battlefield.
Freedom Party
National Security Party
National Agenda Party
National Democratic Union Party
National Unity Party
Alliance Progressive Centrist Party
Prosperous Armenia Party
Democratic Alternative Party
Yerkir Tsirani Party
Armenian Revolutionary Federation Party
Solidarity Party
Liberal Democratic Union of Armenia Party
Republican Party of Armenia
Christian-Democratic Rebirth Party
Homeland Party
One Armenia Party
Constitutional Rights Union Party
P.S. The announcement is open for others to join.