Do You Want Me to Send EU Troops Without Agreement from Both Sides? Developments in the Armenian-Azerbaijani Conflict

TV commentator Artyom Yerkanian spoke about the deployment of the EU observer mission at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, stating, “There is information that the European Union initially proposed to place the observers, namely the mission representatives, not within Armenia, but right at the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, that is, likely in the area between the positions. Azerbaijan rejected this proposal. There is also information that France and the EU initially suggested that the mission be military rather than civilian, however, the head of the EU foreign policy department, Josep Borrell, literally said in his speech at the European Parliament: ‘Armenia agreed, Azerbaijan did not, do you want me to send EU troops without an agreement from both sides?’

It is likely that in a few days we will learn about the specific powers and authorities that this mission will have; for now, it is unclear which country representatives will be involved, and it must also be clarified which areas of the border they will operate in. Although it is clear that they will be moving, meaning that on different days of the week they will be in different parts of the border, depending on where the tense situations arise. According to information received from diplomatic sources, this mission will consist of only 40 people. In other words, it will have a rather modest composition, which is hardly sufficient to carry out a full-fledged mission. Additionally, I should remind you that this mission is planned for just two months,” he said.