"Switch to political and diplomatic channel": the world called for an end to hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh

Moscow is seriously concerned about the aggravation of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Kremlin said.

The hostilities must be stopped immediately, said the press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov.

“We believe that hostilities should be stopped immediately and the process of resolving the conflict as such, as well as the consequences of the current aggravation, should move into a political and diplomatic channel,” the Kremlin spokesman said.

Peskov stressed that it is currently important to stop the hostilities, "and not to deal with who is right and who is wrong."

“Russia has always taken a balanced position.

It is this position that gives Russia the opportunity to use its influence and its traditionally good relations with both countries in order to resolve this conflict, ”he added.

Along with this, the State Duma of the Russian Federation is preparing a statement on Nagorno-Karabakh.

It is expected to be considered in plenary session on Tuesday 29 September.

In the draft statement, the Russian parliamentarians call on the parties to the conflict in Karabakh to return to the negotiation process.

Along with this, they declare their readiness to provide mediation assistance in stabilizing the situation.

On the morning of September 27, it became known about the resumption of armed clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Both sides accuse each other of escalating the conflict.

Yerevan announced the "beginning of the offensive" of Azerbaijani troops.

Baku, in turn, announced a "military provocation" from the Armenian side.

Let us recall that the conflict in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, where mainly Armenians live, began to escalate in 1987, when it was part of the Azerbaijan SSR.

In the period from 1991 to 1994, active hostilities took place in the region.

To date, the conflict remains unresolved, and the territory is controlled by the authorities of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, which is supported by Yerevan.

Recent statements from the Armenian Defense Ministry suggest that the Azerbaijani armed forces have launched a large-scale offensive.

Fierce fighting in the region has been reported.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called an emergency meeting of the Republic's Security Council on Monday.

As stated in the press service of the Cabinet of Ministers, the event discussed the option of "proportionate strike against the enemy."

"During the meeting, issues related to the operational situation on the Karabakh-Azerbaijani line of contact and the infliction of a proportionate blow by the Armenian armed forces on the enemy were discussed," the message says.

The Defense Ministry of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic announced the deaths of 84 of its soldiers in battles in the Karabakh conflict zone in two days.

According to the Azerbaijani side, during the aggravation of the conflict, nine people were killed and 32 were wounded due to the shelling of the Armenian Armed Forces.

Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke about the situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Note that earlier Ankara expressed support for Azerbaijan in the conflict with Armenia.

Now Erdogan stated that “the time has come to end the crisis”, which began “with the Armenian occupation” of Nagorno-Karabakh.

"The patience of Azerbaijan has come to an end, and Baku, on its own, puts an end to the Armenian occupation," Anadolu quotes the head of state.

Erdogan believes that the immediate liberation of the "lands of Azerbaijan" by Armenia will open the way for peace and stability in the region.

At the same time, many politicians expressed themselves in favor of an early cessation of hostilities and the settlement of differences between Armenia and Azerbaijan by diplomatic methods.

Thus, on September 28, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called on the parties to the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh to immediately end hostilities without preconditions.

According to Stefan Dujarrik, the official representative of the UN Secretary General, Guterres voiced the corresponding appeal both during negotiations with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and in a conversation with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

At the same time, the Azerbaijani side reports that President Ilham Aliyev during the videoconference Guterres announced the need to resolve the conflict on the basis of international law, the territorial integrity of the republic and UN Security Council resolutions "demanding the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the Armenian Armed Forces from the occupied territories."

PACE also called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to stop hostilities and return to the negotiating table in the format of the OSCE Minsk Group.

"We are extremely concerned about the outbreak of hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which threaten regional stability," the message published on the organization's website says.

It is emphasized that the other member states of the Council of Europe should refrain from any action or speech that may contribute to increased tension and instability.

In addition, the Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Stanislav Zas made a similar appeal to Baku and Yerevan.

The head of the CSTO expressed serious concern and concern over the resumption of the armed conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“It is necessary to immediately restore the ceasefire and return to the negotiation process, which is being conducted by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs,” the message says.

The CSTO Secretary General noted that the solution to the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh is possible only by political and diplomatic methods.