Maria Zakharova on Alen Simonyan's Statements

The official spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, has also addressed the statements made by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Alen Simonyan. In one of his interviews, Simonyan stated that it is the country that must guarantee the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, meaning the Russian side. He referred to the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, which mentions that the Lachin corridor is a 5 km wide area under the jurisdiction of Russian peacekeepers. According to the spokesperson, a question arises: where is this area and where are the Russian peacekeepers?

Zakharova believes that the public rhetoric, which almost borders on rudeness, does not enhance the image of Armenian political figures. 'Has he somehow mentioned my words about Armenia's recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh? If they want to speak at an expert level, a good political level, then there are all possibilities for that; we have excellent communication channels with Yerevan in all directions, from state to societal. And yet, I think... I understand that all their roles are delineated—who declares what and how. Nevertheless, I am convinced that this does not give the right to those who represent Armenian society to use such expressions, which we have seen and heard quite a bit of recently,' said Zakharova.