Azerbaijan re-blocks crucial road into Nagorno-Karabakh

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News Websites
11 Jul 2023 21:15

The Azerbaijani authorities add that the border crossing will be closed until the criminal investigation into a smuggling claims is completed.

Azerbaijani servicemen stand guard at a checkpoint at the Lachin corridor in 2022 (AFP)

After Armenia accused Azerbaijan of blocking access to Nagorno-Karabakh, the latter announced on Tuesday that road traffic on the sole road linking Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh has been suspended.

In a statement, the Azerbaijani border guards said, "Crossing via the Lachin border post is temporarily suspended," further alleging that the Armenian Red Cross abused the checkpoint for multiple "smuggling attempts", which the organization denied, insisting that no unauthorized material had been found in its vehicles.

“The ICRC is aware of concerns raised about the transport of unauthorized goods across the Lachin corridor and does not support any such activity,” the Geneva-based organization said in a statement.

“No unauthorized material has been found in any vehicle belonging to ICRC. All cargo is subject to customs checks by the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The Azerbaijani authorities added that the border crossing will be closed until the criminal investigation into the smuggling claims is completed.

Since December, Armenia has consistently accused Azerbaijan of blocking supplies to the Nagorno-Karabakh region and of creating a humanitarian crisis by blocking the Lachin corridor.

Back in February, the top UN court, which rules on international disputes, stated that Baku failed to demonstrate that landmines purportedly planted by Yerevan particularly targeted Azerbaijanis and ordered Azerbaijan to open the road after blocking it.

Armenia and Azerbaijan fought two conflicts over the Armenian-populated area of Nagorno-Karabakh, one in 2020 and one in the 1990s, and now are quarreling over the corridor.

Six weeks of violence in the autumn of 2020 claimed over 6,500 lives and ended with a ceasefire accord sponsored by Russia. Russia sent 2,000 peacekeepers to monitor the truce, but tensions remain despite a ceasefire deal.

Nevertheless, Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stressed earlier that there is "no alternative" to the ceasefire deal his country brokered in 2020, while Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov added that the Russian peacekeeping units were "clearly fulfilling its tasks" despite operating in "very difficult conditions."