Baku: Russian MoD ceasefire report regrettable
The deputy head of the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry press service, Anar Eyvazov, has described as surprising and regrettable the Russian Defence Ministry statement on truce violation in the direction of Shusha, local media has reported.
The statement made by the Russian Defence Ministry, quoting the Armenian side that two Armenian armed men were wounded in the direction of Shusha on September 17, allegedly as a result of shelling by the Azerbaijan army units, is surprising and regrettable, he said.
"Thus, the incident was investigated with the joint participation of representatives of the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry and the leadership of the Russian peacekeeping forces. As a result, it was established that the Azerbaijan army units did not open fire on the indicated date in this direction," Eyvazov stressed.
He noted that "it is not clear that the information investigated with the participation of both parties was subsequently presented in a completely different form".
Eyvazov underlined that Azerbaijan continues its efforts to ensure stability in the region and prevent possible provocations under Azerbaijani laws and strictly adheres to the provisions of the trilateral joint statement signed by Baku, Moscow and Yerevan in 2020.
The aforesaid Moscow-brokered ceasefire deal that Baku and Yerevan signed on November 10, 2020, brought an end to six weeks of fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani army declared a victory against the Armenian troops. The signed agreement obliged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s.
About 2,000 Russian peacekeepers have been deployed for five years in Karabakh under the deal. The signed agreement obliged Armenia to withdraw all its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it had occupied since the early 1990s.
The deal also stipulated the return of Azerbaijan’s Kalbajar, Aghdam and Lachin regions. Before the signing of the peace deal, Azerbaijan liberated 300 villages, settlements, city centers, and historic Shusha city that had been under Armenian occupation for about 30 years.