Brussels’ “civilian mission” is nothing however a geopolitical challenge concentrating on Russia’s “ally,” the Russian International Ministry stated
A newly introduced EU mission in Armenia supposedly aiming to “contribute to stability within the border areas” is nothing however a geopolitical challenge serving the West’s pursuits, the Russian International Ministry stated in an announcement on Monday. The mission would hardly enhance the safety state of affairs within the area, it added.
“It’s not the primary time that we see the will of the EU and the West… to achieve a foothold in Armenia… in any respect prices,” the ministry stated whereas calling Yerevan Moscow’s “ally.” Russia treats such strikes as “geopolitical” actions that don’t have anything to do with the true peace course of within the area.
The West “does the whole lot to push Russia out of the area and weaken its historic position as a significant safety guarantor,” the assertion added. The ministry additionally doubted the EU mission’s actual capacity to make sure peace and stability within the South Caucasus, pointing to the truth that an analogous EU mission within the Serbian breakaway area of Kosovo failed to forestall a significant flareup of tensions between Belgrade and Pristina final yr.
Brussels additionally outright ignored public criticism of its initiative leveled by Baku. Final week, the pinnacle of the Azerbaijani parliament, Sakhiba Gafarova, warned that an EU mission might “impede the method of normalization” of relations between Yerevan and Baku.
The EU introduced on Sunday that it might ship what it referred to as a “civilian mission” to Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan to “contribute to stability within the border areas of Armenia, construct confidence and human safety in conflict-affected areas,” and assist the method of normalizing relations between the 2 neighbors.
The mission would contain some 100 civilian workers members, together with 50 “unarmed observers,” the EU stated. In response to Brussels, the mission, which was first introduced by the bloc’s prime diplomat, Josep Borrell, in January, was established at Yerevan’s request.
Moscow insists that solely trilateral agreements reached by Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan might function a foundation for normalizing the state of affairs within the area. The agreements embrace the delimitation of the 2 neighbors’ borders, the opening of transportation routes, and the institution of contacts between civilian teams, lawmakers, and non secular leaders from the 2 international locations. Russia stands able to contribute to this course of, the ministry added.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have a decades-old dispute over the area of Nagorno-Karabakh, part of Azerbaijan with a predominantly ethnic-Armenian inhabitants that claims independence from Baku. In 2020, the 2 nations fought a 44-day warfare, which ended with a Russian-brokered truce.
In September 2022, tensions on the border between the 2 neighbors flared up once more, resulting in a collection of border skirmishes that reportedly claimed the lives of dozens of troopers on either side.
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