Russia: Armenia missed its chance of holding peace talks with Azerbaijan

Armenia has missed a chance to hold another round of peace talks with Azerbaijan, Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, Azernews reports.

She made the remarks at a weekly briefing.

“Unfortunately, Armenia failed to benefit from a regular round of negotiations with Azerbaijan in Moscow on December 23, 2022. Our offer still stands. We're ready to provide a platform for talks between the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers,” she said.

She said it is difficult to assess Armenia’s position as statements of Yerevan on the same issue differ significantly. She also noted that although everything was prepared for the scheduled meeting in Moscow, the Armenian leadership at the last moment canceled the visit of the country’s Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan.

“If the Armenian partners are really interested in solving problems in line with the comprehensive implementation of trilateral statements at the highest level, it’s necessary to continue joint work," she added.

Furthermore, Zakharova stressed that humanitarian convoys pass freely along the Lachin-Khankandi road.

“The public attacks and provocations against the Russian peacekeepers are unacceptable to us. Such actions can cause significant harm to the Azerbaijan-Armenia normalization process,” she said.

The Russian official pointed out that Armenia creates difficulties for the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

"It is obvious that Armenia keeps acting proceeding from the priorities that its armed forces are facing. Last year as well, the Armenian Defense Ministry did not allocate a military contingent to participate in the CSTO joint exercises in Kazakhstan. This, certainly, creates certain difficulties for the allies, forcing them to redraw the plans already agreed upon by the military departments," she said.