Phone talk held between speakers of Azerbaijani Parliament, Russian Federation Council

By Trend

Azerbaijani Parliament Chairperson (Speaker) Sahiba Gafarova had a phone conversation with Chairperson of the Federation Council of Russia’s Federal Assembly Valentina Matviyenko, Trend reports referring to the parliament.

During the conversation, Gafarova informed the council’s chairperson about the deliberate shelling of the civilian population and infrastructure of Azerbaijan by Armenia.

She said that on October 11, Armenian Armed Forces made a missile attack on the second-largest Azerbaijani city, Ganja, as a result of which 10 civilians were killed and more than 30 were injured, including young children.

The speaker of parliament stressed that these attacks by Armenia on the civilian population and civilian objects are a war crime and a gross violation of international law, including the requirements of the 1949 Geneva Convention.

She noted that the Armenian side continues to fire at the population and civilian objects even after reaching an agreement on a humanitarian ceasefire on October 10, following the Moscow meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia with the mediation of Russia.

Gafarova added that along with Ganja, the city of Mingachevir, where the industrial infrastructure and the largest hydroelectric power station in the South Caucasus are located, was also subjected to artillery and missile attacks.

The speaker emphasized that the military-political leadership of Armenia is fully responsible for the current tense situation in the region.

Matviyenko expressed concern about this situation, stressing the importance of ensuring the ceasefire.

Armenian Armed Forces launched a large-scale military attack on positions of the Azerbaijani army on the front line, using large-caliber weapons, mortars, and artillery on Sept. 27.

Azerbaijan responded with a counter-offensive along the entire front. As a result of retaliation, Azerbaijani troops liberated a number of territories previously occupied by Armenia, as well as take important, strategic heights under control.

The fighting continued into October 2020, in the early days of which Armenia has launched missile attacks on Azerbaijani cities of Ganja, Mingachevir, Khizi as well as Absheron district.
Following almost two weeks of intensive military confrontations, Armenia and Azerbaijan, with Russia's mediation, have agreed on a temporary ceasefire for humanitarian purposes, for the exchange of prisoners of war as well as bodies of the dead.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.