Burc Eruygur
19 April 2023•Update: 19 April 2023
ISTANBUL
The Kremlin on Wednesday said the trilateral agreements signed between Azerbaijan, Russia, and Armenia are “the only real basis” for resolving the situation in Karabakh.
During a press briefing in the capital Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the agreements “are now the only real, realistic basis for a settlement” and that Moscow considers “progress along the path of implementing all the provisions uncontested and necessary for everyone."
"We are ready to welcome any steps by the parties that can lead to a defuse of tension and that will contribute to further progress towards the implementation of trilateral agreements," Peskov further said.
Peskov’s comments came amid growing tensions in the region between Baku and Yerevan, notably after three Azerbaijani soldiers were killed on April 11 during an attack by Armenian forces in the Lachin district of the East Zangezur region.
Relations between the two former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.
In the fall of 2020, in 44 days of clashes, Azerbaijan liberated several cities, villages, and settlements from Armenian occupation. The Russia-brokered peace agreement is celebrated as a triumph in Azerbaijan.
South Korea
Peskov also commented on South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s statements earlier in the day, who reportedly said his country could provide non-humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
"Of course, the start of arms supplies will indirectly mean a certain stage of involvement in this conflict," Peskov said, further expressing that this stance is in line with South Korea’s “unfriendly” position against Russia in Ukraine.
There is “nothing radically new” in this regard and in terms of sanctions, Peskov noted, saying “more and more countries will try to draw directly into this conflict."
The South Korean president reportedly said on Wednesday that Seoul could provide aid beyond humanitarian or financial support if Ukraine "comes under a large-scale attack against civilians" during the ongoing Moscow-Kyiv war.
Seoul has not supplied any weapons to Kyiv since the Russia-Ukraine war began last year. It has, however, shipped humanitarian aid to the war-hit nation.
Nord Stream
Peskov also denied media reports in the West concerning claims that Moscow is allegedly planning sabotage at energy facilities in Europe.
"These media of the mentioned countries (Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland) made a mistake in their investigation, they again baselessly prefer to blame Russia for everything," Peskov said during the press briefing.
He also said the Kremlin would prefer to pay more attention to “the topic of the terrorist attack on Nord Stream,” and the need for “a transparent, urgent, and broad international investigation of these unprecedented terrorist acts.”
German, Swedish, and Danish authorities have been investigating the undersea explosions that sparked leaks on the two Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea last September.
The Danish government claimed in documents released on Tuesday that Danish defense patrols spotted Russian vessels days before the pipeline explosion.
Russia called for an international UN-led inquiry into the sabotage and to identify who was to blame, but the request was not supported by the UN Security Council.
