Azerbaijani deputy FM rejects Lachin road blockage at court in The Hague

Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Elnur Mammadov has said that the Lachin corridor is under the control of Russian peacekeepers and movement along the road is not limited.

He made the remarks as a representative of Azerbaijan at a hearing at the UN International Court of Justice on January 30, APA reports.

"Unfortunately, Armenia is using the peaceful protest in the Lachin corridor to put pressure on the peace talks between the two countries. Azerbaijan has declared to the UN and the OECD and confirms before the court that it has not imposed any restrictions on movement along the Lachin corridor and cannot do so. The Lachin corridor is under the control of Russian peacekeepers, and the traffic regime along it has remained the same as before the protests began. The protesters themselves stated that they did not intend to block traffic, and hundreds or thousands of cars and trucks pass through the corridor daily," Mammadov said at a meeting on interim measures.

The Azerbaijan representative added that the activists' actions aim to protect the environment and prevent illegal mining and export of minerals.

It should be noted that the UN's highest judicial body, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), held public hearings on the case of Armenia against Azerbaijan on January 30. Hearings on the case of Azerbaijan against Armenia will be held on January 31.

Public hearings on the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Azerbaijan v. Armenia) will be held at the Peace Palace in The Hague.

The session will be headed by President of the Court Joan Donohue (Joan E. Donoghue).

The hearings will be devoted to the appeal of the Republic of Azerbaijan to Armenia dated January 3, 2023, on the appointment of interim measures.