Acting Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan stated that Yerevan is ready to withdraw its troops and expects similar steps from Baku.
“The Minsk Group offers the parties to withdraw the troops, then, with the help of the Minsk Group, begin the process of demarcation and delimitation of the border. We are talking about the Sotk-Khoznavar section (Gegharkunik region). We are ready to withdraw our troops at any moment, to begin the process of demarcation, we are waiting for similar steps from the Azerbaijani authorities, with whom the Minsk Group co-chairs are negotiating”, – Pashinyan said at a meeting with activists of the Civil Contract party.
The acting Prime Minister noted that Russia is the main partner of the republic in the field of security. The Armenian authorities came out for the deployment of Russian border guards and observers from other countries of the OSCE Minsk Group (France, USA) in the Sotk-Khoznavar section of the Gegharkunik region in the event that Yerevan and Baku simultaneously withdraw their troops.
The situation on the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan escalated on May 12. Pashinyan said that the Azerbaijani military crossed the Armenian border, going 3.5 km inland. The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said that Russia is ready to assist in the peaceful settlement of the conflict between Baku and Yerevan.