On Wednesday, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces were trying to place their positions, so to speak, in two different locations along the Armenian border. Warnings came from Syunik that the Azerbaijanis moved forward along the Ishkhanasar portion. Official sources attempted to calm society, saying that the situation is under control, and the Azerbaijani forces have tried to implement different activities along the border of Syunik with the intention of “border demarcation,” and after the Armenian subdivisions intervened, the Azerbaijani soldiers stopped their efforts. Negotiations are taking place to ease the situation.
In the evening, the governor of Syunik told the Armenian Times newspaper, “The Azerbaijanis came and violated our state borders deliberately, and now they have to return to their locations. Negotiations are underway, and we are waiting for our officials participating in the negotiations to return and provide us with accurate information. The Chief of Staff of the NSS is there. The people who came and crossed our national border were from subdivisions, but their superiors must order them to move back because they are soldiers. They brought a map to show us that this area belongs to them. But it’s ours. Really, it’s ours.”
The governor of Gegharkunik, Gnel Sanosyan, told Aravot Daily in an interview that the positioning of the Azerbaijanis along the border of the province is in the area near Verin Shorzha. They did not initially place their positions there due to unfavorable weather conditions, which is why they are there now. “The commander of our army corps and soldiers are there to make some adjustments. There were no incidents; they did not come forward at all. We are speaking about the border. It is in high-altitude mountain conditions. They did not have positions, but they are setting up their positions now. We have border troops and our soldiers are present. The situation is under control. This is the portion bordering Karvachar, the portion adjacent to the Al lakes.”
In an interview with Aravot Daily, military expert Karen Hovhannisyan said that he had warned since January that there would be demarcation efforts as the weather gets warmer along the areas where there was snow. “Besides that, Azerbaijan has been fighting a psychological war for a while, and recent events are another demonstration of psychological attacks. Therefore, I believe that Azerbaijan has developing goals, and it is trying to reach those goals step-by-step.”
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When asked why the Armenian side has not placed positions in these controversial locations, Hovhannisyan responded, “I would have opposed that statement if Andranik Kocharyan did not say that these positions were abandoned and there was no defense. In other words, yes, we have a serious problem. Instead of dealing with these new positions, we try to make statements for our internal audience to have them calm down or point fingers at this or that domestic political force.”
Regarding the statement made by the governor of Gegharkunik, the expert said that they are trying to justify that these are legal actions. There are not many settlements along the Gegharkunik border and they are ignored. There are also problems with the Al lakes; it is a catchment area, but there are more border settlements in the Syunik Province. “That is dangerous. They can carry out positioning efforts such as this in one night.”
According to Hovhannisyan, the Armenian side needs to make harsh statements, insist that there is no document regarding the border demarcation, and state that Azerbaijan is carrying out psychological attacks. “This thesis must be pushed forward, and we should not be saying that they are working after the snow melted. The government should condemn that behavior and insist that they stop. The government should be demanding.”
Nelly Babayan
“Aravot” daily
