Pashinyan Unexpectedly Rejected Proposal to Resettle Refugees in Shushi

Russian President Vladimir Putin has explained why fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh did not cease in October. 'In October, I persuaded Aliyev to stop military operations in Nagorno-Karabakh with the condition of returning refugees to Shushi, but Armenia was against it... Unexpectedly for me, Pashinyan said that it is unacceptable for them,' Putin said, as quoted by РИА Новости.

He also clarified why the CSTO did not intervene in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict: 'According to international law, Nagorno-Karabakh has always been an integral part of Azerbaijan; the CSTO could not intervene, and no one attacked Armenia,' said Putin.

The Russian president stated that there have been thousands of casualties and injuries in Nagorno-Karabakh. 'Over 4,000 people have died according to official data, and tens of thousands have been injured. It is a tragedy that is happening to certain people; therefore, the main outcome of the agreements reached is the cessation of bloodshed,' Putin said.

Speaking about Turkey's support for Azerbaijan, Putin noted, 'Turkey has never hidden that it supports Azerbaijan on the Karabakh issue; this is a geopolitical consequence of the collapse of the USSR.'

The Russian president also stated earlier that the issue of transferring the city of Shushi has never been on the agenda of discussions and has emerged during this conflict. He added that the status of Nagorno-Karabakh will be determined in the future.

It should be recalled that on November 9, the leaders of Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan reached an agreement regarding the deployment of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh, signing a statement.