The claims of the Azerbaijani side that the trilateral statement of November 9 lays down the pullout of Armenian troops from Nagorno-Karabakh is a blatant lie. This is stated in the statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia.

“Over the past few days, the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan have intensified their provocative actions against the Armed Forces of Armenia and the Defense Army of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh). The settlements of Armenia and Artsakh have also been targeted. Azerbaijan is trying to conceal its aggressive actions by blaming the Armenian side for violations of the trilateral statement of November 9 on the one hand, and by blatantly distorting the statement of November 9 on the other hand.

We deem it necessary to mention that point 1 of the statement of November 9 states that “the sides shall stand at the positions that they held”. However, a month after the signing of the statement, Azerbaijani troops attacked the Hin Tagher and Khtsaberd villages of the Hadrut region of Artsakh, after which they seized those settlements, killed and captured Armenian servicemen. Currently, the Azerbaijani side is trying to occupy new positions in different sectors of the line of contact with different types of weapons.

The latest incident took place today in the vicinity of the Mkhitarashen and Shosh villages.

In this situation, the Defense Army of Artsakh, which was formed by the people of Artsakh in the 1990s and has been the key factor for security over the past 30 years, continues to ensure the security of the people of Artsakh and their right to life along with Russian peacekeepers. Without the Defense Army, the people of Artsakh can’t survive in their historic homeland, and the scenario for pulling out the Defense Army of Artsakh is a scenario for emptying Artsakh of Armenians.

The statement of November 9 only envisages the pullout of Armenian troops from the regions surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh, and this is clearly stated in the statement. The Armenian side has completely fulfilled these points of the statement, but Azerbaijan has responded to this with infiltration into the sovereign territory of Armenia and illegal deployment.

These encroachments against Armenia, which began on May 12, have caused deaths and have seriously put regional security at risk.

We are certain that the resumption of the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under the auspices of the Co-Chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Group, full implementation of the trilateral statements of November 9 and January 11 and elimination of the consequences of the recorded violations, including unconditional maintenance of the ceasefire, the pullout of Azerbaijani troops from the sovereign territories of Armenia and the immediate repatriation of Armenian prisoners of war and civilian hostages may create preconditions for strengthening of peace and security in the region,” the statement by the Armenian MFA reads.