Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov had a telephone conversation on 15 February with Karen Donfried, the United States Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs.
As Azerbaijani media report, citing Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the sides discussed the situation in the South Caucasus and the prospects for the negotiation process between Baku and Yerevan.
Bayramov noted that, “according to the trilateral statement, Azerbaijan guarantees the security of citizens, means of transport and cargo along the Lachin road,” but, according to him, Armenia abuses the Lachin road by using it for illegal economic activity, the movement of Armenian soldiers and the transfer of mines.
In addition, Bayramov noted that the demands of the “protesters” who have blocked the Lachin corridor, the only road connecting Artsakh, which has been under blockade for more than two months, to Armenia, “have still not been satisfied.”
He deemed baseless the claims about a “tense humanitarian” situation in the region. The minister also drew attention to the fact that Armenia resorts to stalling tactics in the negotiation process for a peace treaty.
