MOSCOW, September 29. /TASS/. Russia continues to make vigorous efforts towards de-escalation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing on Thursday.
"Our country continues vigorous efforts to see de-escalation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border via contact with both Baku and Yerevan," she said.
Zakharova reiterated that relevant efforts are also being taken by the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), pointing to the importance of ensuring a sustainable ceasefire and the withdrawal of all forces to their previous positions.
The diplomat drew attention to attempts by a number of external players to add instability to the South Caucasus or "transfer the situation of instability in Ukraine to another part of the post-Soviet space."Currently we are seeing a tendency to simply derail the implementation of these agreements," she said. "We still operate under the premise that the key to stability in the South Caucasus is the full implementation of all provisions of the trilateral decrees by the Russian, Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders on November 9, 2020, January 11 and November 26, 2021. We consider it important under the current circumstances to intensify activity on all fronts, including the unblocking of economic and transport ties in the region, the demarcation of the border and coordination of a peace treaty."
On September 13, shortly after midnight, the Armenian Defense Ministry said several communities had been shelled by the Azerbaijani army. Baku said that it was a response to provocations by Yerevan. Later, Azerbaijan said that it had reached agreements on a ceasefire, but Armenia stated that the shelling continued. Armenia’s Security Council met in an emergency session. It was decided to seek help from Russia in order to engage the provisions of the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, as well as the CSTO and the UN Security Council. Both countries periodically report new border incidents.