As a result of the combat, four servicemen of the Azerbaijani army were killed and four were injured. Four families were left without a son, a brother, a husband and a father. Their children became orphans overnight.
Dear colleagues,
On 12 July the armed forces of Armenia, using artillery, attempted to attack and seize positions of the armed forces of Azerbaijan, in the direction of the district of Tovuz along the state border between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
The armed forces of Azerbaijan were forced to retaliate by launching counter-offensive measures, preventing the advancement of the Armenian armed forces. As a result of the combat, four servicemen of the Azerbaijani army were killed and four were injured.
This provocation by the armed forces of Armenia constitutes an act of aggression and the use of force and should be seen as a continuation of the recent actions and statements of the leadership of the aggressor state Armenia that serve to increase tensions in the region.
The troops of Azerbaijan's State Border Service have been deployed along the extensive part of the state border in districts of Gazakh and Tovuz from the Azerbaijani side, to prevent provocations and reduce cases that can lead to tensions on the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Armenia, on the contrary, has continued to militarize the border between two countries, while deliberately and systematically targeting the civilians.
Such military recklessness on the part of Armenia pursues an objective of drawing the military-political organizations to which it is a party to, into the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, and evade the responsibility of occupation and aggression against Azerbaijan.
It should be noted that Armenia's aggression against Azerbaijan that has lasted for nearly 30 years and provocations perpetrated along the border also contravene the legal documents of the military-political organizations to which Armenia is a member. With these provocative actions Armenia aims at involving third countries in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. Nevertheless, the position of the international community on Armenia's aggressive policy is well known.
The recent provocation by Armenia is yet another evidence that the official Yerevan has absolutely no interest in the negotiated settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. Armenia's aggressive policy posing direct threat to regional peace and security was once again confessed in the speech of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan during the discussion of Armenia's National Security Strategy at the meeting of the country's Security Council held in Yerevan on 10 July 2020.
Armenia has launched this offensive during the time when the international community is joining its efforts to combat COVID-19. This act of aggression and continued violations of the ceasefire by Armenia proves that Armenia's support of UN Secretary-General's appeal for a global ceasefire due to COVID-19 is nothing but hypocrisy. Against the backdrop of deteriorating socio-economic situation in Armenia due to the spread of COVID-19 as a result of incompetent management, Armenia's leadership aims to escalate the situation in the region in order to deviate attention from the country's grave domestic problems.
In blatant violation of the UN Charter and other legal international obligations Armenia has carried out military aggression against Azerbaijan and occupied Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts. The international community has consistently deplored, in the strongest terms, the use of military force against Azerbaijan and the resulting occupation of its territories, as reflected in the United Nations Security Council resolutions 822 (1993), 853 (1993), 874 (1993) and 884 (1993), thus rejecting any actions violating the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and refusing to recognize as legitimate the situation created through such actions.
Azerbaijan calls upon the international community to strongly condemn Armenia's policy of occupation and its provocative actions perpetrated along the state border between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The international community has the responsibility to ensure the strict compliance by Armenia of its international obligations and demand full, immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The international community owes this to over 1 million Azerbaijani refugees and Internally Displaced Persons.
Sincerely,
Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Bulgaria
Nargiz Gurbanova Ph. D.
Remark: The title of the text is given by the editorial staff.