Azerbaijan’s AIR Center draws up report on controversies around Lachin-Khankendi road

Roza Bayramli and Maryam Ismayilova, experts at Azerbaijan’s International Relations Analysis Center (AIR), have prepared a report in English called "The Controversy Surrounding the Lachin-Khankendi Road".

The main purpose of the report is to summarize the events that have taken place in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the last three years and bring them to foreign audiences, Caliber.Az reports, citing the AIR Center.

The report noted that the events that took place on the Lachin-Khankendi road over the past three years were actively promoted by Armenians under the terms "blockade", "ethnic cleansing", and "humanitarian crisis".

Even though Azerbaijan has always acted in line with the norms of international law, the number of countries that supported Armenia during this period was not small, the report reads.

The report reflects both the crimes committed by the Armenians and the facts proving the falsity of the "blockade" issue.

In the first chapter of the report, information was given about the illegal economic activities of Armenians in Karabakh and the resulting damage to the ecological environment.

It also shows the events that led to protests by eco-activists. Although those protests were presented as a "blockade" by the Armenians, facts were shown that refuted this.

The next chapter of the report contains information about weapons and ammunition illegally transported from Armenia to Karabakh before the establishment of the Lachin border crossing point. Visual facts proving this illegal activity were also added to the report.

In order to prevent war crimes, the creation of a border crossing point by Azerbaijan on the Lachin-Khankendi road and the sharp reaction of Armenians to it were also included in the report.

The report includes statistical information on persons crossing from Armenia to Azerbaijan and from Azerbaijan to Armenia in April-September of the current year, as well as information on crimes leading to restrictions on the use of the road, presented by the State Border Service.

In the report, in response to Armenia's appeal, it was emphasized that discussions on the situation in Karabakh will be held at the extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council on August 16, 2023, and that no documents will be accepted at the end of the meeting.

The report also included pictures of Armenians organizing weddings and parties in the "humanitarian crisis". The photos are taken from the posts of Armenians living in Karabakh on social networks.

In the final part of the report, it was stated that Azerbaijan supports the establishment of peace in the region and is ready for reintegration processes.

Moreover, Roza Bayramli announced the statistics of people who passed through the "Lachin" border crossing point by September 1.

She said that a total of 3,687 people had passed through the border crossing point by September 1, 2023.

“Citizens of other countries were also among those who passed. The Azerbaijani side did not prevent anyone’s passage. Some 2,675 of those who crossed to Armenia from the checkpoint were Armenian, 98 were Russian, two were Turkmen, three were Ukrainian, and one was Israeli. Among the crossers, there were also workers from Belarus, Hungary, Kazakhstan and Venezuela,”

In addition, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ani Badalyan has said that a meeting of the delimitation commission on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border will be held on November 30.

According to him, it was agreed to hold a meeting with Azerbaijan on November 30 on the border of the two countries.