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He warns that the current situation could turn into a devastating war with many civilian casualties.
“We are monitoring the situation very closely and it can really trigger a very big conflict, without a doubt. If this will happen, time will show, now it is difficult to say anything. But those countries that participated actively as the so-called countries of contact of the Group from Minsk are France, the United States, Russia and the OSCE, apparently now they need to intensify their participation very strongly ”, commented L. Linkevičius on the situation in BNS on Sunday.
“Because if it becomes a broader military action, there will be many civilian casualties and it is unlikely that it will solve the situation in principle, because only peaceful dialogue can come out of the crisis,” he added.
L. Linkevičius states that he has already tried to contact the representatives of the countries in conflict.
“It just came to our notice then. I tried to contact both ministers, I managed to talk to the Armenian minister. According to him, this is the entire line of contact, there are shootings all over the front, the aviation is involved. According to them, they also see Turkish aviation near the border, and the victims are many wounded, Stepanakert was shot, ”said the minister.
According to him, attempts are also being made to establish contact with the Azerbaijani side.
“We only managed to send a message, remembering our recent conversations, where both promised only a peaceful solution to the conflict, which is committed to that contact group called OSCE Minsk. And all this hangs from the hair, “said L. Linkevičius.
“From what I have communicated with our diplomats, both in Baku and in Yerevan, there is no Internet at all in Azerbaijan, the Twitter platform is not working, Facebook is not working. Apparently it is also related to these events,” he said.
According to the head of Lithuanian diplomacy, Armenia and Azerbaijan should stop the confrontation and military actions.
“Our call is the same as in our dealings with both comrades: as they themselves are committed to the peaceful resolution of the conflict, that is what is emphasized, that is the main argument. And we want to remind you that these are international obligations, ”said the Minister.
L. Linkevičius is convinced that the resurgence of the military confrontation in Nagorno-Karabakh will also take place during the French president’s stay in Lithuania next week, taking into account that France is also participating in the negotiations to regulate the conflict.
“Since he is participating, I think of course it will be discussed and I wouldn’t even hesitate,” commented L. Linkevičius.
The Armenian separatists who control Nagorno-Karabakh, which has separated from Azerbaijan, said that two Azerbaijani military helicopters had been shot down by separatist forces following the bombing of Nagorno-Karabakh in Baku on Sunday.
Karabakh officials said Azerbaijan began “active bombardments” along the Nagorno-Karabakh front line on Sunday morning. They say civilian targets are also being shelled, including Stepanakert, the main city in the region.
At the time, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said it had launched a “counterattack to stop the fighting in Armenia and ensure the safety of the population.”
Armenian separatists took control of Nagorno-Karabakh from Baku during the 1991-1994 war, which claimed 30,000 soldiers. lives.
Russia, the United States, and France have been negotiating since 1994 to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute, one of the biggest conflicts since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. However, so far no long-term solution has been found.
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