• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Thousands In Nagorno-Karabakh Protest Blockade Of Lachin Corridor

By RFE/RL's Armenian Service July 14, 2023

Thousands of people gathered on July 14 in Stepanakert, the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh, to protest the blockade by Azerbaijan of the Lachin Corridor, the only land link between the breakaway region and Armenia.

Azerbaijan's State Border Service (DSX) said on July 11 that traffic through a checkpoint in the Lachin Corridor had been suspended pending an investigation after "various types of contraband" had been discovered in the Red Cross vehicles coming from Armenia.

The move sparked concerns over a humanitarian crisis in the restive enclave, which Armenia has said is experiencing food shortages.

The protest staged on July 14 in Stepanakert's main square by some 6,000 people comes as Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian voiced hope that progress will be made on a peace treaty when he meets with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Brussels on July 15.

Speaking at a government meeting on July 14, Pashinian denounced the blockade of the Lachin Corridor, saying it contradicted a ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in February ordered Azerbaijan to ensure free movement along the road.

"As far as the illegal blockade of the Lachin Corridor and the deepening humanitarian crisis are concerned, the binding ruling of the ICJ creates a possibility for a greater international consolidation to prevent Azerbaijan's policy of ethnic cleansing in Karabakh," Pashinian said.

He also urged international unity against the blockade of the Armenian-populated region.

Armenia and Azerbaijan are trying to make progress toward a peace settlement of their long-running dispute over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The simmering conflict led to a six-week war in 2020 in which nearly 7,000 soldiers were killed on both sides.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) denied the Azerbaijani allegations about contraband in a statement, saying none of the vehicles under its control was involved in smuggling.

But it said without its knowledge four hired drivers had tried to transport some commercial goods in their own vehicles, which were displaying the ICRC emblem. The individuals were not ICRC staff members and they were fired, the ICRC said.

An unnamed EU official told AFP the trilateral meeting scheduled for July 15 between Pashinian, Aliyev, and European Council President Charles Michel -- the sixth in nearly two years -- would cover humanitarian issues, border delimitation, the peace treaty, rights and security of Karabakh Armenians, and connectivity.

In his comments during the government session, Pashinian did not mention tensions on the border, where sporadic fighting and loss of life have persisted despite a cease-fire brokered by Russia to end the six-week war in 2020 and the presence of Russian troops.

The Armenian Defense Ministry said on July 13 that Azerbaijani units fired on Armenian positions in the Upper Shorzha sector. Baku has not responded to the report.

The two sides have previously blamed each other for violating the cease-fire. The fighting in 2020 resulted in Armenia and ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh losing control over parts of the region and seven adjacent districts.

With reporting by AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/armenia-protest- karabakh-lachin-blockade/32503282.html

Copyright (c) 2023. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.