Sending UN peacekeepers to Karabakh up to Baku & Armenia, Russian presidential spokesperson

The sending of UN peacekeepers to Karabakh is up to Baku and Yerevan, Spokesperson for the Russian president Dmitriy Peskov told reporters on January 10

"The topic of sending UN peacekeepers to Karabakh has been on the agenda more than once, but any missions can only be involved with the consent of both sides - both Baku and Yerevan," said Peskov.

Earlier, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan suggested that if Russia "is unable to fulfill its obligations," it might ask the UN Security Council to send a multinational mission to Karabakh.

When asked about the discussions between the leaders of Russia and Armenia on this issue, Peskov reported on ongoing negotiations at various levels.

"There are constant contacts at the working, at various levels. Of course, this topic has been repeatedly on the agenda. But it is clear that any missions can be sent only with the consent of both sides to the conflict," the spokesperson said.

To recap, following discussions with the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent on December 3 and 7, 2022, Azerbaijani specialists from the Ministries of Economy, Ecology, and Natural Resources, the State Service for Property Issues under the Ministry of Economy, and AzerGold CJSC were to conduct primary monitoring on illegal exploitation of mineral deposits on Azerbaijani territory. However, the monitoring failed due to the provocation of ethnic Armenians. A peaceful rally of Azerbaijan’s non-governmental organizations (NGO) on the Lachin-Khankandi road has been going on for over a month.

Meanwhile, Yerevan regarded this as a provocation on the part of Baku, which is aimed at creating a humanitarian catastrophe in Karabakh. As Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated at a government meeting, food shortages began in Karabakh due to the blockade. On December 14, Armenia applied to the European Court of Human Rights with a demand to oblige Azerbaijan to unblock the Lachin road. In turn, the Azerbaijani media continues to disseminate information and footage of the free movement of vehicles along the Lachin-Khankandi road.