Acting Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan has said Armenia must be ready for possible grave developments, to defend its sovereign territory from Azerbaijan’s encroachment, per PanArmenian.

“In the event of a bad scenario, we expect the support of our allies, but I hope that we will not have any bad scenarios here and all issues will be resolved through negotiations,” Avinyan told reporters on Friday, May 14.

On the morning of May 12, the armed forces of Azerbaijan violated the border of Armenia in the southern province of Syunik, advancing 3.5 kilometers and surrounding Sev Lake, which is situated on the border between the two countries but is predominantly a part of Armenia. On May 13, the Azerbaijani military committed more border violations against Armenia, advancing near Vardenis (Gegharkunik province) and Sisian (Syunik province).

Avinyan said negotiations are ongoing but no final results have been achieved so far. “I am convinced we will reach a settlement one way or another, because it is very clear that the Azerbaijani armed forces have violated the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia,” the acting Deputy PM said.

“We definitely want to resolve the situation peacefully and are ready to hold discussions in a calm and peaceful manner.”

The official said the Azerbaijani side is carrying some “maps of unknown origin”, which have nothing to do with reality.

“In fact, it was on this basis that their border troops moved forward, but the Azerbaijani side assures that they do not want to take actions that could deepen the crisis,” he said.

Avinyan added that Armenia’s appeal to the CSTO has already been officially sent and a response is anticipated within three days.