Russia claims new truce for Armenia, Azerbaijan
Russia said it secured agreement on a humanitarian truce between Armenia and Azerbaijan starting Saturday, although the two ex-Soviet countries have yet to fix the exact parameters.
Moscow had been hosting the first talks between the bitter rivals since the worst fighting in decades erupted last month over the disputed territory of Nagorno- Karabakh, a landlocked region in the South Caucasus. The cease- fire is to start at 12 p. m., the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement early Saturday.
Armenia and Azerbaijan will start “substantive negotiations” to resolve the long- running territorial clash, according to the ministry. While the Russian mediation appears to have produced results after more than 10 hours of talks, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev warned it was a last chance to resolve the conflict as the meeting began in Moscow.
“We’ll get our lands back, either through peace or war,” Aliyev said in a TV address to the nation Friday. “We want to do it peacefully. We’re giving Armenia one last chance.”
The cessation of hostilities will enable the two sides to exchange prisoners of war and other detainees and bodies of those killed with the mediation of the International Red Cross, Russia said.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov began the talks with his Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts seated at the same table, after almost two weeks of intense fighting that has killed hundreds and left a trail of devastation as each side accused the other of targeting civilians. Since the conflict reignited on Sept. 27, the warring sides have ignored repeated calls for a cease- fire by France, Russia and the U. S., which act as the so- called Minsk Group of mediators.
The latest attempt to restore a cease- fire came after Russian President Vladimir Putin held a series of phone talks with Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
French President Emmanuel Macron also spoke to Aliyev and Pashinyan and the Elysee voiced optimism in a statement before the talks began that the two sides were “heading toward a truce soon, although the situation remains fragile.” France has coordinated efforts with Putin since the start of the week and is working toward a resumption of negotiations in the coming days, it said.
Armenian President Armen Sarkissian said in a Bloomberg TV interview Friday that Turkey was “deeply involved” in the conflict and he’d asked the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to investigate the actions of its member state.
“I hope our colleagues in NATO will make their voice heard and put pressure on Turkey that they should not get involved,” Sarkissian said.
While he’s “thankful” to Putin for organizing the talks, Armenia won’t have “any other choice” but to recognize Nagorno- Karabakh’s independence if fighting continues, he said.
Turkey has pledged support “with all its means” for Azerbaijan, though insists it’s not involved in the fighting.
Aliyev has vowed to continue the military campaign until Armenian forces agree to leave Nagorno- Karabakh and seven surrounding districts that are internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.