YEREVAN, May 6. /TASS/. In Armenia’s time of difficulty, Russia helped solve the problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Nagorno-Karabakh. This was reported by the press service of the Armenian government, in wake of the Thursday meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia.
"During a difficult moment, the Russian Federation extended a helping hand to us, assisted in solving the problems caused by the pandemic and aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh. Thanks to the efforts of the Russian Federation, it was possible to stop the hostilities and achieve substantial de-escalation in our region. The presence of Russian peacekeepers is a solid guarantee of Nagorno-Karabakh’s security. I want to note the role of President [Vladimir Putin] of the Russian Federation in achieving peace in the region," he emphasized.
On November 9, 2020, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed a joint statement on a complete ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the document, the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides stopped at the positions that they had maintained, and Russian peacekeepers were deployed along the engagement line in Nagorno-Karabakh and along the Lachin Corridor that connects Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. It also envisages an all-for-all exchange of prisoners of war.
After the deployment of peacekeepers, the situation stabilized. Thousands of Nagorno-Karabakh residents who left their homes during the hostilities, returned with the support of the peacekeeping force.
In April, the first batch of Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine was delivered to Armenia. Later on, the parties reached an agreement on the purchase of 1 million doses of the vaccine. Yerevan also said it was in talks with Moscow about launching the production of the vaccine domestically with a view to manufacturing up to 100,000 doses per month.