This week, the Azerbaijani Armed forces Israeli guided missile “spike” was struck by a transport and filling device anti-aircraft missile system “OSA”, belonging to the Armenian Armed forces. Despite the fact that the cease-fire is violated daily, almost hourly, the incident with the missile strike on a defensive military equipment on the territory of Artsakh (Karabakh) is unprecedented battles after April 2016 for its military and political component. As this setting did not pose any threat to Azerbaijan, its deliberate destruction was a provocation, to push the Armenian side to retaliatory action.
Despite this, the incident has not received wide international resonance. In addition to the military authorities of the warring parties, no international organization responded to the incident. Was not followed and the statement of the Ministry of foreign Affairs of Armenia, despite the fact that this step Baku confirms once more the senselessness of participation in any negotiation process on the settlement until the establishment of the ceasefire. Followed the statements of the OSCE Minsk group and the co-chairing countries, including Russia, which has taken on itself the role of “moderator” of the Karabakh negotiations process in recent years. This is despite the fact that their actions Azerbaijan is trying to prove the inaction of the OSCE Minsk group format, and fail the efforts of Russia to stabilize the situation.
The current situation clearly shows, that all seemed resigned to the fact that Azerbaijan should not only periodically to go to the provocations, but to gradually increase their scale, and provoke new hostilities and destabilise the situation. About this is evidenced by the fact that the international community does not expect a proportional action from the Armenian side, and considers as legitimate, Stepanakert and Yerevan continue to cold-bloodedly ignore these provocations, no matter how much Baku has increased their scale and scope.
Prior to this incident, foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian said that during a regional visit of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk group in early summer may be followed by a new meeting of the foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan. In response, the Minister of foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov said that such a meeting is possible in principle. “From the logic of the meeting of foreign Ministers in Moscow (referring to the meeting of foreign Ministers of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia in Moscow on April 28 – from the author) I have the impression that the withdrawal of troops in exchange for peace or surrender of territories in return for peace is possible. This logic is only in the negotiation process over the last twelve years. In diplomacy there are no talks for talks. Everyone understands that Armenia should withdraw its troops from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan,” the Azerbaijani APA, said Mammadyarov.
This was followed by the reaction of the press Secretary of the Armenian foreign Ministry Tigran Balayan, according to which the content of the Moscow meeting represented only by foreign Ministers of Armenia and Russia. And the fact that the foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, violating the agreement and not extended a similar message, according to Balayan, suggests that Baku has other comments regarding the meeting.
Interestingly, Mammadyarov not only speaks openly about what’s on the table is the concept of “territory in exchange for peace,” but insisted that abandoning the preconditions for the beginning of substantive negotiations, Yerevan thus discusses this concept. In this statement Mammadyarova is a trap. If everything is so clearly, and the Armenian side is ready to discuss this concept, then why Baku had hit the equipment of the Armenian Armed forces and to question the continuation of the renewed negotiation process. In the end, it is obvious that such provocations may return Yerevan to its previous tactics of preconditions.
In fact, there are no prerequisites to the fact that the Armenian side is discussing this concept. This is what caused the provocative actions of Azerbaijan aimed at escalating the situation. It is not that other, as a new manifestation of the military Catania. Lose the PRO took place on the eve of the visit of the OSCE Minsk group to the region, appointed at the beginning of June, and is the co-chair countries. The message is very simple: Azerbaijan lets you know that is not going to implement the agreement on strengthening of ceasefire regime, achieved last year at the summits in Vienna and St. Petersburg, despite the tangible pressure in this direction from the co-chair format, and if not satisfied the requirements of the withdrawal of Armenian forces “from the occupied territories”, Azerbaijan could go on a more serious military decisions. Against this background catches the eye the behavior of Moscow, which is not blind, deaf and dumb to this large provocation of Azerbaijan.
