For a long time, Azerbaijan has been trying to convince the international community that the Lachin corridor—which links Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) to Armenia—is not closed at all, and that the natural gas and electricity supplies to Artsakh have not been stopped. This was announced by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at Thursday’s Cabinet meeting of the government of Armenia.

"Obviously, Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh claim the opposite. I believe the best way to de jure resolve this contradiction is to send an international fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin corridor, and we should consistently work in that regard," the Armenian PM added.

Artsakh has been under a blockade for 46 days now. Since December 12 of last year, Azerbaijan continues to close—under the name of "environmentalists"—the "road of life" connecting Artsakh to Armenia and the rest of the world, thereby stopping traffic and cutting off the only connection of Artsakh citizens with the outside world.

As a result 120,000 people in Artsakh—30,000 of whom are children—welcomed the New Year under a blockade, waiting for the reopening of the aforesaid road. Due to the Azerbaijanis’ closure of this corridor connecting Artsakh to Armenia, 1,100 Artsakh residents—of which 270 are children—cannot return home.