Armenia asked to postpone the trilateral meeting with Russia and Azerbaijan due to the situation in the Lachin corridor

Armenia asked to postpone the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan scheduled for December 23 in Moscow to prepare a peace treaty. This was stated by the press secretary of the Armenian Foreign Ministry Vahan Hunanyan, TASS reports .

He noted that Armenia confirmed its participation in the meeting until "the illegal blocking of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan."

“Obviously, the priority of the work of Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan at the moment is the smooth restart of the Lachin corridor in accordance with the tripartite statement of November 9, 2020 and work on the problems that arose as a result of the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh,” Hunanyan explained.

He added that at the same time, new proposals regarding the document on the normalization of relations were submitted to Azerbaijan.

In turn, the Russian Foreign Ministry stated that Armenia refused to participate in the trilateral meeting. “Regret was expressed for the decision of Yerevan to refuse to participate in the scheduled for December 23. meeting in Moscow,” the message on the website of the Russian department says after a conversation between the foreign ministers of Russia and Azerbaijan.

On December 12, Azerbaijani citizens, who introduced themselves as environmental activists, blocked traffic along the Lachin road (Stepanakert-Goris highway) in the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh.

This is the only road connecting Karabakh and Armenia. According to the tripartite agreements following the results of the 2020 Karabakh war, the road "remains under the control of the peacekeeping contingent of the Russian Federation", and Azerbaijan guarantees the safety of traffic along the Lachin corridor in both directions.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan believes that Russia is not fulfilling its obligations. He accused Russian peacekeepers of inaction after the actual blockade by Azerbaijani activists.

“The humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh remains extremely tense as a result of Azerbaijan's illegal blockade of the Lachin corridor. Hundreds of families remain separated on different sides of the blockade. Nagorno-Karabakh lacks a number of essential goods, including food,” Pashinyan stressed.

The Kremlin stated that they are doing everything necessary to ensure order in Nagorno-Karabakh.

On December 5, environmental activists already held a similar action on the Lachin road. "Kommersant" notes that then, after the intervention of the commander of peacekeepers Andrei Volkov, traffic on the highway was restored.