Pashinyan said that Russia is moving away from the South Caucasus

Armenian PM Pashinyan says Russia is moving away from the South Caucasus

Pashinyan reiterated that Russian peacekeepers do not control the Lachin corridor; speaking about the situation in the region, he admitted that "one day we will wake up and see that Russia is not here." Moscow has rejected the accusations against the peacekeepers

Russia, taking or not taking any actions in the South Caucasus, is moving away from the region, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in an interview with La Repubblica.

According to Pashinyan, Russian partners say that Western countries are pushing the Armenian government "to take measures aimed at ousting Russia from our region." "But <...> on the contrary, we see that Russia itself is withdrawing from the region due to the steps it is taking or not taking," the Armenian prime minister said (quoted by Armenpress).

Pashinyan noted that "there are processes" that lead to the idea that "one day we will just wake up and see that Russia is not here."

According to the Armenian Prime Minister, Russian peacekeepers in the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh, according to the agreements concluded by Moscow, Yerevan and Baku after the end of hostilities in 2020, should control the Lachin corridor, but in fact this does not happen. "Why? There may be two reasons: either the Russian Federation cannot or does not want to maintain control over the Lachin corridor. Both, in our opinion, are problematic," he said.

The Lachin Corridor is located in the Lachin region of Azerbaijan. The six—kilometer highway is the only road from Karabakh to Armenia. In December 2022, unknown persons who introduced themselves as eco-activists from Azerbaijan blocked the road. Yerevan insists that the blockage prevents the supply of gas and electricity to Nagorno-Karabakh, the supply of food and medicines to the region. Pashinyan criticized the Russian peacekeeping mission for not fulfilling its obligations. Russia has denied the accusations; The Foreign Ministry stated that the peacekeepers are doing "everything possible to resolve the situation," Moscow is working to improve the situation.

In April 2023, people who introduced themselves as activists reported that they were stopping their action, but the Armenian authorities claimed that the corridor remained blocked. At the same time, an Azerbaijani checkpoint appeared, which Armenia considered a "gross violation" of the agreements. In Azerbaijan, the installation of the point was called a legal decision.

In June, Russia once again demanded that Azerbaijan unblock traffic in the Lachin corridor. The International Court of Justice of the United Nations called for freedom of movement on it.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stated in early August that the Lachin corridor was not blocked. However, after that, Armenia reported a shortage of water in Nagorno-Karabakh due to the blockage.