Pashinyan: Risk of new aggression by Azerbaijan remains high
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan accused Azerbaijan of shelling civilian facilities and infrastructure deep in Armenian territory displacing more than 7,600 people, in a speech he delivered on Thursday to the United Nations General Council.
“This was not a border clash. It was a direct, undeniable attack against the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Armenia,” Pashinyan said.
Last week, clashes erupted between Azerbaijan and Armenia, leaving 207 Armenian and 71 Azerbaijani soldiers dead, in a most violent confrontation since the six weeks war in 2020 over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region which claimed the lives of more than 6,500 troops from both sides.
Pashinyan during his speech accused Azerbaijan of “unspeakable atrocities.”
“There are evidences of cases of torture, mutilation of captured or already dead servicemen, numerous instances of extra-judicial killings and ill treatment of Armenian prisoners of war, as well as humiliating treatment of the bodies,” he told the UN General Assembly.
Pashinyan also said that the risk of new aggression by Azerbaijan remains very high “especially taking into account that every day Azerbaijan violates the ceasefire, and the number of casualties and those injured could change any moment.”
A day after Pashinyan’s speech, Azerbaijani forces escalated military tensions with Armenia, violating the truce reached between the two sides after a two-days long aggression last week.
Armenian Defense Ministry blamed neighboring rival of violating the ceasefire agreement by opening fire towards Armenian combat positions in the morning hours.
The shoot-outs were stopped by retaliatory actions, Armenia’s top brass said in a written statement.
Pashinyan’s speech came just days after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged peace between the two sides in a meeting where he hosted both countries' top diplomats.
“Strong, sustainable diplomatic engagement is the best path for everyone,” Blinken said.
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, during a visit Sunday to the Armenian capital Yerevan, blamed Baku for “illegal” attacks on Armenia, condemning an “assault on the sovereignty” of the country.
