Blinken Has a Phone Conversation with Aliyev

The U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has spoken with the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, expressing deep concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. Blinken shared the news on his Twitter account.

“The United States calls on all parties to continue dialogue to reach a sustainable peace agreement,” said Blinken.

It is noteworthy that on July 13, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also spoke with President Ilham Aliyev, discussing the necessity of free movement through the Lachin corridor.

On December 12, 2022, a group of Azerbaijanis in civilian clothing closed the Stepanakert-Goris highway, which connects Artsakh to Armenia, citing environmental reasons. They left the area on April 28, after Azerbaijan established a checkpoint on the Lachin road on April 23, taking full control over it. Artsakh has also been deprived of gas and electricity supplies from Armenia.

On July 29, 2023, one of the patients being transferred from Artsakh to Armenia, Vagif Khachatryan, was abducted by representatives of the Azerbaijani border service. It later became known that he was in one of the hospitals in Baku.