September 19, 2023

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On September 19, Azerbaijan unleashed another large-scale aggression against the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, aimed at completing its policy of ethnic cleansing.

Guided by a sense of impunity, Azerbaijan openly took responsibility for the aggression. The Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan stated that "anti-terrorist measures" are being launched in the area of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Nagorno- Karabakh, about which, according to the official statement of the Azerbaijani side, the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent, as well as the Russian-Turkish monitoring center, have been informed.

We strongly condemn Azerbaijan's starting aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh and the mass atrocity crime which is the continuation of the large-scale use of force unleashed by Azerbaijan against Nagorno-Karabakh exactly three years ago, in September, 2020. Under the pretext of "destroying military objects", Azerbaijan is shelling civilian settlements, the city of Stepanakert, and other cities and villages.

The Armenian side has repeatedly warned that the continuous aggressive actions of Azerbaijan against Nagorno-Karabakh, the unconcealed warmongering rhetoric, the absolutely false and reprehensible propaganda of calling the population of Nagorno- Karabakh "terrorists" pursues one goal: to subject the population of Nagorno-Karabakh to ethnic cleansing through the use of force and deprive the population of Nagorno-Karabakh from the right to live freely and in dignity in their own homeland. The illegal blockade of the Lachin corridor, the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia, since December 2022 and the total blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh pursue the same goal. Among other, the attack was preceded by disseminating false information including by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan about mining and sabotage activities, which indicates the planning of the attack and the preparation of the information field. We state once again that the armed forces and military equipment of the Republic of Armenia are not deployed in Nagorno-Karabakh, all the news about mining and sabotage operations are false and fabricated.

We call on international partners, members of the UN Security Council which has primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security, the Russian peacekeeping contingent deployed in Nagorno-Karabakh based on the Trilateral Statement of November 9, 2020 signed by the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia, to undertake clear and unequivocal steps to put an end to Azerbaijan's aggression.