Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry, answering the question, what guarantees does the Russian side given by offering the authorities of Artsakh to meet with the representatives of the Azerbaijani side on the territory of Azerbaijan, that they will not be kidnapped and arrested, like a number of Armenians, said that there can be no guarantees. , in a situation where the government of Armenia radically changes its position regarding the most critical issues.
She noted that in involvement of third parties in the negotiation process that was previously established by Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia, is negatively influencing the resolution of the ongoing crisis in Artsakh. She also explained that this creates certain handicaps for the Russian peacekeeping forces in Artsakh to prevent violence in the area.
“Armenia’s position has undergone a radical, 180-degree change in regards to the most important issues. Moreover, those issues were of the utmost importance for Yerevan itself. There can be no guarantees when these agreements are not implemented in a transparent manner,” said Zakharova.
Earlier, on August 28, 3 residents of Artsakh, Alen Sargsyan, Vahe Hovsepyan, Levon Grigoryan, were arrested by the Azerbaijanis while passing through the Hakari illegal checkpoint in the Lachin Corridor accompanied by Russian peacekeepers. They are students and were going to Armenia to continue their studies. Later it was reported that Azerbaijan accuses them of “disrespecting Azerbaijani national flag” and will subject them to administrative detention for 10 days.
