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Armenia–Azerbaijan conflict

Baku says France trying to arm Armenia unacceptable

The Azerbaijani foreign ministry strongly condemned the remarks "about the forced eviction of Armenians from Karabakh," emphasizing that they aim to mislead the international community

BAKU, October 4. /TASS/. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry has called France's efforts to arm Armenia unacceptable as it carries security risks in the region.

"France's aspiration to arm Armenia in any way possible, to drag it again into aggression and military ventures is unacceptable. France should realize that these efforts, as well as historically ongoing attempts to interfere in our region, will fail," the Foreign Ministry said in a commentary circulated in response to statements by French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna at a press conference in Yerevan.

Baku strongly condemned Colonna's remarks "about the forced eviction of Armenians from Karabakh," emphasizing that they aim to mislead the international community. The commentary also noted that Paris' statements about its unwavering support for Armenia "once again prove the absolute groundlessness of France's assertions voiced for 30 years that it is a neutral and independent mediator."

At a press conference in Yerevan on Tuesday, Colonna announced France's readiness to sign an agreement on military assistance with Armenia.

September 19 marked another escalation of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. Baku announced the beginning of "local anti-terrorist measures" and demanded the withdrawal of Armenian military from the region. Yerevan said that there are no Armenian armed forces in Karabakh and called what is happening "an act of large-scale aggression." Russia called on the parties to the conflict to stop the bloodshed and return to a diplomatic settlement. On September 20, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry announced that an agreement had been reached with the participation of the Russian peacekeeping contingent to suspend anti-terrorist activities in Karabakh.

President of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) Samvel Shahramanyan signed a decree on September 28 on the termination of its existence from January 1, 2024. The population is instructed to consider the reintegration conditions proposed by Baku and independently decide if they wish to stay.

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Armenia France Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict

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