The Blockade of Artsakh Aims to Revisit the Provisions of the Trilateral Statement, Says Artsakh's Foreign Ministry

On February 18, 2023, during the Munich Security Conference, the President of Azerbaijan made a series of statements aimed at disguising the criminal policy against the people of Artsakh and distorting the essence of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict through breaches of causality.

In particular, the Azerbaijani president once again attempted to deny the obvious fact of the blockade of Artsakh, a fact confirmed by the international community, with the exception of Azerbaijan. As a supposed proof, it was stated that during the entire period of the blockade, 2,500 vehicles belonging to the Russian peacekeeping forces and the International Committee of the Red Cross passed through the corridor, and 100 patients were evacuated to Armenian hospitals through the ICRC.

However, the presented data contradict Baku's claims. During the 73 days of blockade, fewer vehicles passed through the Lachin corridor than in the three days preceding the blockade. All vehicles that passed through the Lachin corridor belonged to either the Russian peacekeeping forces or the ICRC. No vehicles belonging to the citizens of the Republic of Artsakh, its state institutions, or commercial transport have been able to pass through the Lachin corridor.

The transfer of seriously ill patients to Yerevan is only possible through the ICRC, which again highlights the absence of unhindered movement through the Lachin corridor. Moreover, at the beginning of the blockade, at least one critically ill patient died due to the impossibility of urgent transfer to Yerevan for further treatment.

The fact that many citizens of the Republic of Artsakh cannot return to Artsakh and that hundreds of divided families cannot reunite is another proof of the ongoing blockade initiated by Azerbaijan.

Notably, following a trilateral meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, the Azerbaijani president discussed with reporters the proposal to establish a checkpoint in the Lachin corridor. His words clearly indicate that Baku had developed these plans long before confirming the blockade.

The aforementioned facts convincingly demonstrate that, in addition to creating unbearable living conditions for the people of Artsakh, the blockade is also aimed at revisiting the provisions of the trilateral statement from November 9, 2020. Azerbaijan is evidently seeking to legitimize its intention to revisit the provisions of this trilateral statement.

These attempts must be decisively thwarted by all actors involved in the process of normalizing relations in the region. Free movement through the Lachin corridor must be fully restored in accordance with the provisions of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, without any preconditions.

Attempts by Azerbaijan to intervene in the internal political life of Artsakh and its vision of dialogue between Stepanakert and Baku are absolutely unacceptable for official Stepanakert. In this regard, we reiterate that the comprehensive resolution of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict must be achieved through negotiations that ensure equal rights for the parties involved and do not include preconditions that predetermine the outcome of the negotiation process.

In this context, we find it necessary to restore the international mediation format as an additional guarantee of the irreversibility of the peace process. Once again, we emphasize that the results of the illegal use of force and threats by Azerbaijan cannot serve as a starting point for establishing peace, stability, and security.