BISHKEK, October 13. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that he may visit Armenia after the situation there stabilizes, and also that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan may visit Russia, but he is not up to "traveling right now," Putin said.

"I am in contact with him. There is [my] invitation [to Armenia] and his invitation to Russia. We will wait and see. We understand everything, as we are all adults. We realize what is going on there. This is the tragedy of Karabakh’s Armenians. He appears not to be up to traveling right now. However, we maintain contact, work with him, and are always in touch. Should the situation stabilize, I will visit them, and they will come, he will come," Putin told reporters.

The Russian president pointed out that joint work between the two countries has not halted.

"We have an appropriate work schedule lined up. All our institutions are working in conjunction, the Foreign Ministry and the government’s economic bloc are working," he stressed.

Nagorno-Karabakh

On September 19, tensions flared up again in Nagorno-Karabakh. Baku announced it was launching what it described as "local anti-terrorist measures" and demanded the withdrawal of Armenian troops from the region. Yerevan, in turn, said that what was happening was "an act of large-scale aggression." Russia called upon the parties to the conflict to stop the bloodshed, end hostilities, prevent civilian casualties, and go back to trying to settle the Karabakh issue diplomatically. On September 20, an agreement was reached to cease the hostilities in Karabakh. On September 21, in the Azerbaijani town of Yevlakh, a meeting was held between representatives of Azerbaijan and Karabakh’s Armenian residents in order "to discuss the issues of reintegration."

On September 28, Samvel Shahramanyan, president of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, signed a decree dissolving the unrecognized state effective January 1, 2024. The local ethnic Armenian population has been advised to consider the reintegration proposals being put forward by Baku and decide for themselves whether to remain or to relocate.