Political scientist: Transportation of military equipment to Karabakh - violation of int'l law

The transportation of military equipment and personnel to Azerbaijan's Karabakh region is a violation of international law, expert, political scientist Zaur Mammadov told Report.

"Armenia, during negotiations with Azerbaijan behind closed doors, accepts our conditions, as it was in Prague, when the parties recognized each other's borders according to the Almaty Declaration of 1991. On the other hand, Armenia de facto doesn't recognize Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan. Such contradictory actions violate the basic principles of negotiations," he said.

In his opinion, the mediators who participated in the meetings between the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia should not be silent: such a negative course of events affects their image too.

"If Armenia does not recognize the Azerbaijani borders, then we should not recognize the borders of Armenia either. Pashinyan should think about how he will defend his territories with such contradictory actions. Events show that Armenia patronizes separatists and illegal formations in Karabakh," he said.

The expert added that the world community should understand why Armenia reacts so sharply to the rally of Azerbaijani eco-activists in Karabakh: their presence on the Lachin road prevents the transfer of illegal goods and weapons to the separatists.

"Armenia has not yet withdrawn its armed forces from Karabakh, which is a gross violation of the tripartite statement of November 10, 2020. Thus, the entire responsibility for destabilization in the region lies with the Armenian side," the political scientist said.