Will Azerbaijan Withdraw Before the Elections? An Interview with Kuti Mayor Sima Chitchyan

Officials visiting Kuti have reassured community leader Sima Chitchyan that incidents at the border and clashes between Armenians and Azerbaijanis will cease before the early parliamentary elections.

“There will be a delimitation soon, we will live here, and they will go to their territories,” he said in an interview with Sputnik Armenia.

When asked whether this resolution includes the withdrawal of Azerbaijanis from Armenian territories, Chitchyan responded briefly: “They are not withdrawing; rather, they will come to clarify the borders.”

It should be noted that Azerbaijani military personnel have been present in the area of Lake Sev in Armenia's Syunik Province since May 12 and are attempting to establish a stronger foothold there. Similar situations are also reported in the regions of Kuti, Verin Shorja, and Norabak in Gegharkunik Province.

Negotiations have taken place in several rounds with Russian mediation. The opposing side currently has no intention of retreating.

Armenia has appealed to the CSTO and requested military assistance from Russia. The military-political leadership has stated that they wish to resolve the issue peacefully but do not rule out the use of force if negotiations yield no results.

Additionally, on May 25, a soldier, junior sergeant Gevorg Khurshudyan, was fatally wounded by gunfire from the enemy near the village of Verin Shorja in Gegharkunik Province. On the night of May 26–27, the Azerbaijani side captured six Armenian servicemen in the border area of Gegharkunik.

On May 27, Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan proposed at a Security Council meeting to deploy international observers at the border with Azerbaijan, representing either Russia or another co-chairing country of the Minsk Group.