© Photo: Maria Novoselova/Vestnik Kavkaza
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry made a formal denial of the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell’s statement.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry rejected the statement of EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, which contains distorted information about the reasons for the recent military escalation in sovereign Azerbaijani territories.
“The military anti-terrorist operation currently being carried out by Azerbaijan is a response to a number of large-scale military provocations and terrorist acts by the illegal armed forces of Armenia. In just one day, as a result of sabotage actions by Armenian troops, two civilians and four military personnel were killed in a mine explosion. In addition, two servicemen were wounded as a result of mortar shelling,”
– the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan explained.
The text further emphasizes that Azerbaijan’s anti-terrorism measures were taken to prevent possible large-scale provocations by the Armenian armed forces, which, contrary to the Tripartite Declaration, have not yet withdrawn from the Azerbaijani territory.
Anti-terrorist operation in Karabakh: goals and reasons
The local anti-terrorist activities of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan have been launched to restore the constitutional order in the entire territory of the Karabakh Economic Region. The civilian population and civilian infrastructure are not targets, only legitimate military targets of the Armenian Armed Forces are taken out of action.
The anti-terrorist operation will make it possible to ensure the provisions of the Trilateral Statement signed on 9-10 November 2020, suppress military provocations, sabotage and terrorist attacks in the Karabakh Economic Region, secure the withdrawal of formations of Armenia’s armed forces from Azerbaijan, and thereby provide the safety of the civilian population and restoration work in the region.