Azerbaijan raises alarm over formation of "mini-NATO" in Armenia US, EU fueling a new conflict in the South Caucasus

There is an explanation for everything in this world: any tragedy, victory, defeat, provocation. There is an explanation for what has been happening in recent days along the conditional border between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

As we reported earlier, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence reported on the morning of March 31 that recently there has been a concentration of manpower, armoured vehicles, artillery installations and other heavy firepower and intensive movement of troops of the Armenian armed forces in various directions of the conditional Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

"We warn that the Azerbaijani army will resolutely suppress any attempt of military provocation against Azerbaijan by the Armenian armed forces. We reiterate that all responsibility for the aggravation of the situation and any possible provocation will fully fall on Armenia and its patrons," the Ministry said.

The statement of the national defence ministry can be considered a very timely and clear message to all those forces that are clearly consciously carrying out a provocation, having chosen the appropriate occasion for it. It is obvious: on April 5 in Brussels there will be a trilateral meeting between US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. It is expected to discuss the prospects of Armenia's membership in the European Union, as well as security guarantees that the West is ready to present to official Yerevan. Thus, a triple military-political axis involving Armenia, the EU and the United States is forming before our eyes. 

Official Baku has repeatedly voiced its attitude to this meeting. Azerbaijan believes that such initiatives will provoke Armenia, where revanchist sentiments reign, to new provocations. In addition, Azerbaijan has repeatedly emphasised that despite the existing difficulties and challenges, our country is determined to continue its activities to ensure peace and stability in the region.

But, to all appearances, Armenia and its patrons could not resist the temptation of committing new provocations, timing them to coincide with the forthcoming trilateral meeting in Brussels. It remains for us to say that all statements of official Yerevan about readiness for peace with Azerbaijan are hypocritical lies. After all, the concentration of armoured vehicles, artillery installations and other heavy firepower on the conditional border with Azerbaijan and the intensive redeployment of manpower are impossible without a direct and clear order from Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian.

The one who has repeatedly demonstrated a willingness to make statements refuting his own previous speeches. In addition, we all see that Armenia is completely dependent on its new curators, who do not want to establish a final, stable peace in our region, preferring to push official Yerevan to carry out provocations, the purpose of which is to set fire to the South Caucasus and, under this pretext, bring it here military intervention under the pretext of protecting its new satellite.

We have seen the hypocrisy of the West throughout the long period of occupation of the territories of Azerbaijan. Suffice it to point to the fact that there were no sanctions against Armenia for the seizure of our lands, ethnic cleansing, and genocide in Khojaly. Moreover, in 1992, the 907th amendment to the "Freedom Support Act" was adopted in the US Congress. Yes, this amendment was adopted in the very year when Armenia occupied Shusha and committed genocide against the peaceful Azerbaijani population in Khojaly. This fact alone is enough to realise how cynical and erroneous the White House position on the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict is.

Later we saw the continuation of this cynical and provocative policy. To be convinced of this, it is enough to ask simple questions. For example, did the United States and the EU hold such a conference for Azerbaijan, whose territories were under Armenian occupation? The answer is known: they did not hold such a conference for all the almost 30 years of occupation of 20 per cent of our territories. After the 44-day war, did the U.S. and the EU provide any support in solving the problem of mines planted by Armenians in the territories of Azerbaijan destroyed after the war, did the US and the EU help to restore the liberated territories of Azerbaijan? Again, the answer is obvious: they did not.

Instead, we have seen and continue to see the West not only politically and financially supporting the occupying state, but also systematically preparing Armenia for a new war with Azerbaijan. The West is purposefully creating a mini-NATO mechanism for Armenia, supplying it with weapons that official Yerevan will be ordered to use against Azerbaijan.

We see it all, we warn about it all. And all responsibility for this policy of deliberate provocations against Azerbaijan falls on Armenia and its patrons.