The establishment of a checkpoint on the border with Armenia is the sovereign right of Azerbaijan. This was stated by Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev, in his meeting with visiting French foreign minister Catherine Colonna on Thursday.

"The establishment of a border checkpoint at the beginning of the Lachin-Khankendi [(Stepanakert)] road on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border is the sovereign right of the country and an expression of ensuring its territorial integrity," Aliyev said.

Also, he accused Armenia of not fulfilling the obligations arising from the tripartite statement signed in November 2020. In this regard, Aliyev said that Armenia "does not allow the creation of a corridor with Nakhchivan, does not withdraw its troops from the territories [i.e., Nagorno-Karabakh] of Azerbaijan where Russian peacekeepers are temporarily stationed, and used the Lachin corridor to transport weapons, ammunition, and other military means to Karabakh."

In turn, the French FM noted that her country "wants peace, economic and social development in Azerbaijan and the entire South Caucasus."