Azerbaijan: Russia ignores ceasefire agreement UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace says he will give up his posts, report says

Azerbaijan has accused Russia of failing to honor its commitments under a 2020 ceasefire agreement over the conflict with Armenia over the Caucasus region of Nagorno-Karabakh. “The Russian side has not ensured the full implementation of the agreement within the framework of its obligations,” the foreign ministry said in Baku on Sunday. Moscow also “did nothing to prevent” Armenia from supplying the separatists in the enclave with military equipment.

Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan and Armenia have disagreed over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave, which is mainly inhabited by Armenians. There have already been two wars with thousands of deaths. After six weeks of fighting that left more than 6,500 dead in 2020, Russia came to a ceasefire agreement that forced Armenia to give up large areas. Since then there have been deadly skirmishes on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

According to the agreement, Russian troops are responsible for monitoring the ceasefire. These also secure the so-called Lachin Corridor, the only connection between the regional capital Stepanakert and Armenia. Azerbaijan blocked the road on Tuesday, sparking protests and fears of a supply crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh. On Saturday, the Russian Foreign Ministry asked Azerbaijan to reopen the road.

peace talks on Saturday

Also on Saturday, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met for EU-brokered peace talks in Brussels. According to Brussels, the aim of the meeting with EU Council President Charles Michel was a lasting peace in the South Caucasus and a normalization of relations between the two countries.

It was the sixth meeting mediated by the EU in just under two years. In May, representatives of both countries met in Washington, Brussels and Moscow. Moscow views EU and US mediation efforts with suspicion and views the Caucasus as a Russian sphere of influence.

To strengthen its mediating role, the Russian government offered a meeting of the foreign ministers of both countries in Moscow on Saturday. A future peace treaty could also be signed there. (cst/sda/afp)