U.S. State Department on Azerbaijani Diversions

The U.S. State Department is closely monitoring reports of gunfire that occurred on March 5 in Nagorno-Karabakh, resulting in the deaths of five individuals, spokesperson Ned Price stated during a press briefing regarding Azerbaijan's recent diversionary operations in the Lachin corridor. This information comes from the U.S. State Department.

“We are aware of the reports of gunfire on March 5 inside Nagorno-Karabakh, which has resulted in five fatalities. We offer our condolences to the families of the victims. The conflict cannot have a military solution, and the use of force to resolve disputes is never acceptable. The only way to achieve peace is through negotiations,” Price announced.

He further emphasized that they do not intend to impose any mediations on the parties, as they must decide themselves. “We are not actually mediators, but rather partners for both countries. I believe both in words and in actions we have demonstrated that we can bring the two countries closer together and our willingness and desire to achieve additional progress in the relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the State Department spokesperson added.

“We are not doing this to compete with Moscow. We are doing this to reach an agreement and resolve the longstanding conflict between the two countries. Unfortunately, the conflict continues to claim lives, as seen on March 5. Our only interest here is peace and security, which is also in the interest of the peoples of Armenia and Azerbaijan,” he said.

It is noted that on the morning of March 5, around 10:00 a.m., a group of Azerbaijani troops targeted and opened fire on a vehicle carrying personnel from the police passport and visa department in an area known as 'Khypalou.' Three police officers were killed, and one was injured. Baku, for its part, reported the death of two Azerbaijani soldiers.