Iran Press/ Europe: Kremlin slams Armenian claims on being forced to join Russia-Belarus union state as provocative. Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said remarks by the Armenian Security Council head about pressure do not correspond to reality.
"Such statements can be considered provocative. They do not correspond to reality. None of the Russian officials said this and did not bring it to the Armenian side through anyone," spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Armenian news agency.
On Dec. 26, Armen Grigoryan, secretary of the Armenian Security Council, said Yerevan is "being forced" to join the union state of Russia and Belarus.
Armenian Security CouncilThe union is a supranational structure consisting of Russia and Belarus, created to deepen economic integration. Moscow exercises pressure on Armenia in the dispute over the Lachin corridor.
Armen Grigoryan's remarks come after a tense situation simmered in Nagorno-Karabakh over the Republic of Azerbaijan road blockade.
Lachin corridors is the only route connecting Armenia to the Caucasus territory of Karabakh, called Artsakh.
For nearly three weeks, Russian peacekeepers have not been in control of the Lachin corridor, Armenia's prime minister claimed on Tuesday.
The Lachin Corridor—the only road connecting Artsakh to Armenia—remained closed on Monday for the 15th day, despite claims by Russian peacekeepers who told residents on Saturday that the road would reopen on Monday without Azerbaijani checkpoints.
The region of around 120,000 people is running short of food, medicines, and fuel. In the latest spike in decades-long tensions between the two ex-Soviet nations, Armenian authorities have accused Azerbaijan of orchestrating a full-blown humanitarian crisis in Karabakh.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has accused the Russian peacekeepers deployed along the Lachin corridor of failing to prevent the "illegal blockade."
Azerbaijan and Armenia fought two wars over Karabakh. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, ethnic Armenian separatists in Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan. The ensuing conflict claimed around 30,000 lives.
Another flareup in violence in 2020 claimed more than 6,500 lives and ended with a Russian-brokered truce that saw Yerevan cede territories it had controlled for decades.
According to Armenia officials, due to the Russian-mediated truce after the 2020 war, The Republic of Azerbaijan guaranteed unhindered passage of passengers, cargo, and people along the Lachin corridor. Now it turns out that the Lachin corridor is not under the control of Russian peacekeepers.
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