"We strongly condemn the views expressed by Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, on February 22, during a joint press briefing with the Minister of European Affairs and Foreign Affairs of Luxembourg, Jan Asselborn," said the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry in response to Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and Luxembourg's Minister of European Affairs and Foreign Affairs Jan Asselborn's statements, News.azreports.

"Armenian Foreign Minister, as always distorts the discussions and negotiations on the peace process and engages in manipulation. The Armenian side demonstrates once again that it is not interested in peace in the region with its statement.

The evaluation of Azerbaijan's proposal to establish a border checkpoint to prevent abuse of the Lachin road in connection with the exploitation of Azerbaijan's natural resources, the illegal rotation of Armenian armed forces, the transportation of mines and ammunition, and the illegal crossing of citizens of third countries into Azerbaijan's territory, as an application of force demonstrates once again that Armenia is not interested in providing transparency on the Lachin road.

The rejection of the proposal by the Armenian side for a border checkpoint that will put an end to the abuse of the Lachin road, which was intended only for humanitarian purposes, once again shows that the true intention of the Armenian side is to repeat its claims that the protests have created a "blockade" and a "tense humanitarian situation" and to continue using the road for illegal purposes, contrary to the Tripartite Statement of November 10, 2020. This proves once again that the claims that the protests on the Lachin road caused a "humanitarian situation" have no basis, and Armenia uses this claim only for political purposes.

Regarding the international mechanism regarding the rights and security of the Armenian residents living in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, as well as Armenia's claims regarding the issue of dialogue with the Armenian residents, we would like to note that, as clearly stated in the Munich negotiations, the rights and security of the Armenian residents living in the region are the Constitution and legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan will be provided in accordance with the acts.

Regarding Armenia's claims on the international mechanism concerning the rights and security of Armenian residents living in Azerbaijan's Karabakh region, as well as the issue of dialogue with Armenian residents, we would like to emphasize that, as was clearly stated at the Munich discussions, the rights and security of residents of Armenian origin living in the region will be ensured in accordance with the Republic of Azerbaijan's Constitution and legislative acts.

The Azerbaijani side also declared that it is ready to hold a dialogue with the representatives who have the right to represent the Armenian residents, not with those who come to the Karabakh region from outside and present themselves as representatives of the Armenian residents. In accordance with international law norms and principles, as well as the Prague and Sochi agreements, in which the countries mutually recognize each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty, Armenia should not interfere in Azerbaijan's internal affairs and abandon its territorial claims.

The biased position shown by the Luxembourg minister, which is based on ignorance of the situation in the region and is utterly contrary to relevant international law principles, is completely unfounded. It appears that the Luxembourg side has not yet abandoned the practice of using theses that reflect the Armenian side's false propaganda. We reiterate that such provocative and biased statements cannot be an impediment to the region's future development and advancement based on respect for international law principles," the Ministry noted.

News.az