Maariv: “Azerbaijan’s patience is running out”

The oldest Israeli newspaper Maariv (‘Evening Prayer’), which is published in Hebrew, has presented an article which in general reflects Tel Aviv’s opinion about the developments in the area of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. According to the periodical, Baku fears that the hostilities may turn into a total war. On Monday, the Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan made a statement that if Armenian separatists didn’t stop shooting at civil facilities of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces would bomb Khankendi.

“Fire-fights continue in the frontline districts, even though Azerbaijan declared a ceasefire on a unilateral basis yesterday. The Azerbaijani media reported that in response to Armenia’s shooting, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces managed to eliminate and injure 170 Armenian separatists and destroy the Armenian headquarters in Nagorno-Karabakh,” the newspaper reports.

According to Maariv, the world is attentively following news from the South Caucasus region: “The Russian media reported that the Foreign Minister of Russia, Sergey Lavrov, and the US Secretary of the State, John Kerry, expressed ‘serious concerns’ about the revival of hostilities between the Azerbaijani Armed Forces and the Armenian military forces. They urged the sides to achieve a peaceful settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.”

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. “The war ended with the occupation of the Azerbaijani territories in 1994, as a result of which a hundred thousand Azerbaijanis left their native places, becoming refugees in their own country; and the self-declared separatist entity was established. The UN doesn’t recognize this separatist entity; and attempts to settle the conflict have been taking place for several years without any concrete results,” Tel Aviv believes.

Arye Gut, an expert in the sphere of international relations, who is in Baku at the moment, comments on the latest events and states that the Armenian side, which has shown its desire to ruin the peace process with Azerbaijan, is committing provocations on the occupied Azerbaijani lands, including on the Line of Contact, using numerous military weapons and forces.

“From April 2nd the Armed Forces of Armenia began shooting at Azerbaijani villages and residential areas; they attacked military positions of Azerbaijan. The authorities in Baku have stated and warned Armenia many times that it would never agree to the status quo. In trying to defend its citizens and positions, the Azerbaijani army counterattacked the Armenian forces and made them withdraw. Despite clear and strict calls by international organizations to leave the occupied territories, the Armed Forces of Armenia continue shooting and violating any attempts at a ceasefire. The latest events and provocations of the Armenian Armed Forces, as well as the resistant response of the Azerbaijani troops, have proved once again that the authorities in Yerevan have to understand that even if Azerbaijan’s patience was previously on the verge, now it has run out,” Gut said.