Armenia is ready to extend the mandate of Russian peacekeepers for 10-20 years

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced his readiness to sign a document so that the mandate of the Russian peacekeepers would be extended for several years. He announced this during a speech at the congress of the Civil Contract party headed by him.

“I am ready to sign a document in Sochi and accept that the presence of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh is extended for 10-15-20 years,” – said the prime minister.

Pashinyan expressed hope that Russian peacekeepers would continue to be in Karabakh, but noted that he “cannot make a decision instead of Russia.”

Earlier, Pashinyan said that Yerevan agreed to work on the basis of the basic principles and parameters provided by Russia for establishing interstate relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The press secretary of the head of the Russian state, Dmitry Peskov, said earlier that on October 31 Sochi would host a trilateral meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

The previous meeting in this format took place in November 2021.

The situation on the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Recall that on the night of September 13, hostilities broke out on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan – the parties accused each other of aggression. Armenia stated that the Azerbaijani military shelled the country’s territory using artillery and drones. The border regions of Gegharkunik, Vayots Dzor and Syunik regions were shelled. These territories have nothing to do with Karabakh.

Azerbaijan, in turn, stated that the Armenian military fired at the positions of Azerbaijani troops on the border – there was a clash. The country accused Armenia of intending to disrupt the peace process. At the same time, both Armenia and Azerbaijan reported losses among their military.

The Russian Federation calls on the parties to exercise restraint and fulfill the tripartite agreements reached by Moscow, Baku and Yerevan. As noted in the Kremlin, the escalation of the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia is of extreme concern. Representatives of Russia are in constant close contact with Baku and Yerevan both on diplomatic and military lines.

On September 13, the CSTO Collective Security Council agreed on the creation of a working group to constantly monitor the situation in the organization’s area of ​​responsibility in connection with the aggravation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

However, on 14 September Armenia was told about the use of an attack drone by Azerbaijan. And Baku accused Yerevan of violating the ceasefire and shelling. On the same day, the Kremlin called the situation on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan tense.