Do EU Observers Have Access to Areas of the Border Where Russian Border Guards Are Located? NSS Responds

The National Security Service asserts that, unlike the Secretary of the Security Council, Russian border guards do not obstruct the EU observer mission in any section of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

Following inquiries from 'Azatutyun,' the agency clarified whether the EU observer mission has access to border areas currently manned by Russian border guards. The NSS stated, “There are no obstacles to the monitoring activities of representatives of the EU observer mission in sections of the Armenian-Azerbaijani (conditional) border protected by the NSS border troops.”

This question arose after recent border tensions resulted in the Armenian side suffering four fatalities and one injury due to Azerbaijani gunfire in Syunik. Residents of Inner Hand reported to the media that Russian border guards in their area are preventing European observers from entering.

Similarly, EU mission head Markus Ritter and the Secretary of the Security Council made the same claims the previous day. Armen Grigoryan emphasized that the Europeans face challenges only in the Inner Hand area. “Only Russia has access there, and Russia is present; Russia has not been able to prevent the incident. This leads me to believe that the reality is different. It’s clear that the EU civilian mission has a stabilizing role, we fully support their activities, and we will continue to do so. In the Inner Hand area, yes, that is the issue, and we have addressed it,” Grigoryan stated.

Grigoryan did not clarify how the Armenian side plans to resolve this issue. The media has posed inquiries to the Security Council and the government about the legal basis and mandate under which Russian forces are stationed along the route to Inner Hand. Responses are still pending.

Similar questions were also directed to the National Security Service, which remains unanswered. The service has only clarified that Russian border guards have not been deployed for a specific time and provided general explanations about their purpose. “The purpose of deployment of Russian border guards at the Armenian-Azerbaijani (conditional) border is to monitor and implement measures aimed at resolving potential conflicts peacefully,” the agency reports without specifying what measures are being referred to.