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Azerbaijan says Karabakh Armenians deciding to leave territory on their own — statement

"We are ready to provide them with conditions for a better life than they had when they were hostages of the military junta created by Armenia," the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry stressed

BAKU, September 28. /TASS/. The Azerbaijani authorities were not involved in the decision made by some in the Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh to relocate to Armenia or any other country, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said.

"We once again state that Azerbaijan has nothing to do with the decision made by local Armenians of the Karabakh Region of Azerbaijan to relocate to Armenia or any other country. We are ready to provide them with conditions for a better life than they had when they were hostages of the military junta created by Armenia," the Ministry said on its Telegram channel.

The Ministry noted that Azerbaijan is determined to "reintegrate the Armenian residents as equal citizens," adding that the Azerbaijani Constitution, national legislation and international obligations "ensure a firm basis for achieving this goal."

Another escalation of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh occurred on September 19. Baku announced "local counter-terrorism measures" and demanded that Armenian servicemen withdraw from the region. Yerevan claimed that there are no Armenian Armed Forces in Nagorno-Karabakh and called the ongoing events a "wide-scale aggression." Russia called on the sides of the conflict to stop the bloodshed and to return to diplomatic settlement. On September 20, the sides agreed to stop the hostilities; the next day, representatives of Baku and the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh met in the Azerbaijani city of Yevlakh "to discuss reintegration issues."

On September 24, some Karabakh residents started to leave for Armenia. A refugee center has been established in the Armenian city of Goris, Syunik Region, where thousands of displaced people have already arrived. The refugees told TASS that they have to spend hours waiting for an opportunity to enter Armenia through the Lachin corridor.