By Alexander Pracht
In a statement released Tuesday, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s Office denied Azerbaijan’s accusations regarding alleged border ceasefire violations, while also advocating for the signing of a normalization treaty between the two nations.
Since Sunday, Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry has issued six separate reports claiming its forces have come under fire from the Armenian side. However, Armenia’s Defense Ministry refuted all allegations following a review, emphasizing that Azerbaijan has not provided any facts or substantiation about the claims. Furthermore, it noted that despite repeated offers to establish a joint mechanism for investigating such incidents, first proposed last June, Azerbaijan has yet to respond positively to the initiative.
“The Armed Forces of Armenia don’t have a reason or order to violate the ceasefire,” the Prime Minister’s Office stressed, reaffirming the country’s commitment to a peaceful resolution of tensions with its neighbor.
The statement further disclosed that Armenia sent written proposals to Azerbaijan in January regarding railway cargo transportation between the two countries, including routes from Azerbaijan’s western regions through Armenian territory to its Nakhchivan exclave and beyond. The proposal also included suggestions for establishing bilateral mechanisms for mutual arms control, which remain unanswered by Azerbaijan.
The Prime Minister’s Office also expressed readiness to continue border delimitation works with Azerbaijan, as the two countries had agreed last year.
In separate announcements last Thursday, the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministries reported that their normalization talks were completed, with Armenia agreeing to two disputed provisions: withdrawing European Union observers from its border with Azerbaijan and the mutual dismissal of legal claims against each other in international courts. However, Baku continues to demand preconditions that Armenia must first enact — amend its constitution and formally agree to disband the OSCE Minsk Group, an international mechanism established in the 1990s to mediate the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Several countries, including the United States, Germany, and France, along with regional neighbors Georgia and Iran, have welcomed the progress in Armenia-Azerbaijan normalization, viewing it as a crucial step toward ending hostilities in the South Caucasus.
