(MENAFN- AzerNews) The claims of the Armenian side that Azerbaijan allegedly
'blocked' the road, imposed a 'blockade' against Armenian
residents, and that a 'tense humanitarian situation' arose, are
unfounded, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said during
a meeting with the Head of the International Committee of the Red
Cross (ICRC) office in Azerbaijan Dragana Kojic, Azernews reports
citing the MFA.
Bayramov noted that the above assertions are unfounded taking
into account the fact of passing more than 3,000 vehicles along the
Lachin-Khankendi road in recent months, as well as other facts.
At the same time, it was noted that back in December 2022, the
Azerbaijani side expressed its readiness, if necessary, to provide
assistance to local residents of Armenian origin directly or
through the ICRC.
The peaceful protest on Azerbaijan's Lachin-Khankendi road
against the illegal exploitation of Azerbaijan's mineral resources
in the area of Russian peacekeepers' temporary deployment has been
going on since December 12, 2022.
Previously, following the talks with the Russian peacekeepers'
command on December 3 and 7, 2022, a group of experts from the
Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, the State Property
Service under the Ministry of Economy, and AzerGold CJSC were going
to begin preliminary monitoring of the illicit mineral resource
exploitation, as well as emerging environmental implications on
Azerbaijani lands, where the Russian peacekeepers are temporarily
deployed, on December 10, 2022.
The expert team was expected to inspect the environmental
condition at the 'Gizilbulagh' gold deposit and the 'Damirli'
copper-molybdenum deposit, monitor various areas, organize
cadastral property records, assess potential risks and threats to
the environment, as well as to underground and surface water
sources.
However, the expert group, accompanied by Russian peacekeepers,
faced provocations when arriving in the monitoring area. The
planned initial inspection and monitoring did not take place due to
the fact that the Russian peacekeepers not only did not create
necessary conditions but also prevented the entire process from
carrying on.
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