Today.Az » Politics » Baku: Armenia fails to honor commitments under ceasefire deal
03 December 2021 [15:03] - Today.Az


By Azernews

By Vugar Khalilov

Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov has said that Armenia fails to honor its commitments under the trilateral ceasefire deal signed by Azerbaijan, Russia and Armenia on November 10, 2020, the ministry has reported.

Bayramov made the remarks at the 28th meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council held in Stockholm, Sweden on December 2.

Withdrawal of troops

Addressing the meeting, Bayramov spoke about the current situation and future prospects of the post-conflict realities in the region following the 44-day war with Armenia in 2020.

“It is a matter of serious concern that Armenia continues to violate its obligations under the trilateral statements. Armenia must fulfill the trilateral statement of November 10, 2020, and completely withdraw its armed forces from the territory of Azerbaijan,” Bayramov stressed.

He underlined that the end of the conflict created a unique opportunity for both Armenia and Azerbaijan to move forward on the basis of mutual recognition and respect for each other's sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of international borders.

"Azerbaijan has repeatedly stated its readiness for this and has taken a number of unilateral practical steps in this regard immediately after the end of the conflict. Armenia has not yet responded," Bayramov added.

He said that Azerbaijan began active large-scale construction on the liberated territories after the conflict, which lasted for almost 30 years.

Traces of the occupation are being removed and steps are being taken to return to normal life, Bayramov underlined.

Accurate mine maps

He stated that Armenia has not yet provided full and accurate maps of all mined areas, which slows down the post-conflict rehabilitation and reconstruction in the liberated lands and seriously hinders the safe and dignified return of IDPs to their homes.

Bayramov stressed that since the signing of the trilateral statement on November 10, 2020, 180 Azerbaijani citizens, including 71 civilians, as well as journalists and other media workers, have been killed or seriously wounded in mine explosions.

"Additional pressure should be put on Armenia to provide accurate maps of all mined areas in line with its obligations under international humanitarian law," the minister emphasized.

Armenia has also failed to fulfill its commitments to locate some 4,000 Azerbaijanis who went missing during military operations in the early 1990s, which is important for healing the wounds of the past conflict, he added.

Unblocking transport links

Bayramov noted that the 28th meeting of the OSCE Foreign Ministers coincides with the first anniversary of the trilateral statement, which defined the parameters for the establishment of lasting peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan. This statement was completed by a trilateral statement signed on January 11, 2021, on unblocking the regional transport communications, he added.

He stressed that delays in restoring the economic and transport links in the region must end.

The minister described the restoration of transport communications as confidence-building and post-conflict normalization measures, which will provide broad economic benefits to all stakeholders.

“The soon-to-be-launched Zangazur corridor will serve peace and cooperation in the region and create unprecedented new opportunities for all regional countries,” Bayramov said.

The minister underlined that Azerbaijan has restored justice and order by liberating its territories from Armenian occupation that violated international law for three decades. He added that for the first time during the past 30 years opportunities have emerged to achieve peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Bayramov labeled the Sochi meeting of the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders on November 26 as an important step forward in this regard.

The three leaders held detailed and thorough discussions on the implementation of previously agreed conditions, as well as identified future steps for the post-conflict normalization, Bayramov said.

He noted the importance of creating a bilateral Armenian-Azerbaijani commission with Russia’s consultative role on the delimitation and demarcation of borders by late 2021.

“Azerbaijan expects that these agreements will be implemented without delay and will contribute to our goal of making the South Caucasus a more stable place,” Bayramov underlined.

He urged the international community to make joint efforts to help strengthen regional security and stability.

“The international community must not allow false expectations to arise and make every effort to fully implement the trilateral statements and to establish practical relations with Armenia and Azerbaijan to build trust and stability in the region,” he added

Moreover, he noted that the OSCE can contribute to this process with its experience and available tools in the post-conflict rehabilitation sphere.

“Taking into account the changing realities, Azerbaijan calls on partner countries to assess and use new promising opportunities for development and cooperation in the region,” Bayramov concluded.



Copyright © Today.Az