At a meeting of the Armenian government on June 29, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that the provocation committed by Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh is aimed at disrupting efforts to establish peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, to resolve issues of the rights and security of the people of the Nagorno-Karabakh. 

"Against the background of the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh, the closure of the Lachin corridor, on June 28, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces launched artillery and unmanned strikes in the direction of the positions of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army in the Martuni [Khojavend in Azerbaijani] and Martakert [Aghdere in Azerbaijani] regions. As a result, four servicemen of the Defense Army were killed," the head of government said.

According to him, the latest provocation aims to disrupt efforts to establish peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, to resolve issues of the rights and security of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh."These days, the Armenian delegation headed by the Foreign Minister continues negotiations in Washington with the Azerbaijani delegation in the direction of agreeing on the text of the peace treaty. There is no alternative to peace in our region, and our government, faced with all the difficulties and complications, will continue its political course towards establishing peace," Pashinyan noted.

Commenting on the escalation in the region the day before, Nikol Pashinyan called on the international community to take practical steps to ensure the rights and security of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, recalled the ongoing blockade of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan and warned of a high risk of destabilization in the South Caucasus.

Response from Azerbaijan

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry stated that they strongly rejected the views expressed by the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, at the government meeting on June 29, that Azerbaijan allegedly aggravated the situation in the region, carried out a policy of ethnic cleansing against Armenian residents, and kept the region under blockade.

"On June 27, the wounding of an Azerbaijani serviceman as a result of the provocation of the Armenian armed forces, which Armenia has not yet fully withdrawn from the territory of Azerbaijan, contrary to the commitment of Armenia, is an attempt to obstruct the negotiations between the foreign ministers in the United States, in addition to the deliberate escalation of the situation in the region," the report added.

"In response to the mentioned provocation, it is absurd to label the measures taken by the Azerbaijani side against the Armenian armed forces as ethnic cleansing. At the same time, it is known that Armenia does not digest the regulated and transparent passage of Armenian residents in both directions from the Lachin border crossing point. In this regard, the false propaganda that there is a tense humanitarian situation in the region has no basis," the information stated.

"The Armenian side should refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of Azerbaijan, respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan not only in words, but also in deeds, and immediately remove the Armenian armed forces from the territory of Azerbaijan, which are a threat to peace and security in the region," the ministry concluded.