Documents Are Extremely Important for Both Azerbaijan and Armenia, Says Peskov

The significance of the trilateral statement made by the leaders of Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan on November 9, 2020, is difficult to overestimate. This was stated by Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of Russia, during a conversation with journalists today.

“We assess the documents from a year ago as extremely important, both for Azerbaijan and for Armenia, as documents that allowed for the cessation of hostilities and set the path for peaceful development of regional economies and infrastructure,” he said.

According to Peskov, the Russian peacekeeping forces in Karabakh are ensuring security, facilitating the process of returning refugees, and monitoring the ceasefire.

“This is extremely important. That is why the significance of the signed documents is hard to overestimate,” Peskov emphasized.

It should be recalled that on November 9, 2020, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev adopted a joint statement concerning the cessation of military operations.

The trilateral statement specifically indicates that by November 15, Azerbaijan would return Kelbajar (later this deadline was extended by 10 days), by November 20, the Aghdam region, and by December 1, the Lachin region, leaving a corridor 5 km wide, which would ensure Armenia's connectivity but would not touch Shusha.

Armenia is ensuring transport links between Azerbaijan's western regions and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.

Russian peacekeeping forces are being established along the contact line in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin corridor, remaining for a period of five years, with an automatic extension possibility if neither party announces the cessation of this provision six months before the expiration of the next five years.

It is also noted that internally displaced persons and refugees are returning to Artsakh and adjacent areas, and exchanges of prisoners of war and other detained persons are taking place, while all economic and transport connections in the region are blocked.