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Referring to the EU observation mission stationed in Armenia on the air of 24TV, political scientist Artur Khachikyan claimed that it did not prevent the Azerbaijani attacks on the Republic of Armenia.
“How many times have they attacked us in the last 3 years? How many times- Sotk, Jermuk, that last village (Nerkin Hand – Ed.), when four soldiers were killed… How many times have they attacked us? They say (EU observers – Ed.) that the Russians didn’t let them in, then they say, no, it didn’t happen that way,” Khachikyan noted.
When did the Azerbaijani invasions take place?
After the 44-day war in 2020, Azerbaijan launched several large-scale military offensives against Armenia, invading and occupying the sovereign territories of Armenia.
The first attack took place on May 12, 2021, when Azerbaijani units invaded the Sev Lich area of Syunik province, and then Verin Shorzha and Kut villages of Gegharkunik province and took up positions there.
On November 14, 2021, using armored vehicles, Azerbaijani units invaded the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia in the direction of the Gegharkunik province, resulting in the siege of four combat positions of the Armenian Armed Forces.
On November 16, 2021, clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia took place in Syunik province. The Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia reported that four Armenian servicemen were wounded, later reporting that 1 serviceman had died and 12 had been taken hostage.
The last large-scale military invasion took place on September 13, 2022. According to official data, more than 220 Armenian military servicemen were killed, more than 20 soldiers were captured, and 293 were wounded. Around 150 square kilometers of territory was occupied by the enemy, civilian infrastructure was considerably damaged.
EU observers were deployed in Armenia after the military invasions of Baku
Weeks after the aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan in September 2022, the first EU civilian mission was deployed in Armenia. The decision was made during the quadrilateral meeting held in Prague on October 6, 2022. From October 20 of the same year, 40 European civilian observers were deployed in Armenia for the period of two months, completing their activities on December 19, 2022.
The second EU mission was deployed in Armenia from February 2023 for a period of 2 years. Since then, the Azerbaijani side has not launched any new invasions of the Republic of Armenia. However, there have been border incidents, one of which took place in April 2023, in the Tegh village of Syunik province, and the other in May, in the Sotk community of Gegharkunik province. The latest incident took place in Nerkin Hand.
It is noteworthy that Mr. Khachikyan makes no reference to the Russian border guards stationed on the eastern borders of the Republic of Armenia after the 44-day war, and their inactivity during the invasions of the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia.
Conflicting information regarding the entry of observers into the Nerkin Hand area
On February 13, the units of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan opened fire in the direction of the Armenian positions located in the Nerkin Hand area, killing four Armenian soldiers.
Answering the question about what the EU mission was doing during the incident, Markus Ritter, Head of the EU mission in Armenia, said: “The Russian side should be asked why our entry to Nerkin Hand was forbidden.”
Ritter’s assertion was also confirmed by the Secretary of the RA Security Council, Armen Grigoryan, who noted that the entry of EU observers to Nerkin Hand was prevented by the Russian border guards stationed near the village.
The RA National Security Service issued a statement contradicting Grigoryan’s and Ritter’s assertions, claiming that “Russian border guards do not hinder the movement of European observers in any section of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border”.
Answering the question of MP Anna Grigoryan on how come representatives of one country hinder the movement of the representatives of a foreign agency in the territory of the Republic of Armenia, RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated: “An alarm was sounded and it is being investigated in order to understand what obstacles we are referring to, whether there were such obstacles or not, and certain conclusions will be drawn based on the results of the investigation.”
Thus, the political scientist grossly manipulates information by placing the responsibility on the EU observation mission for not preventing the Azerbaijani invasions in the last three years or not reacting adequately when the observers were deployed on the RA border after all the aforementioned instances of Baku’s aggression.
At the same time, official information regarding the obstruction of the entry of observers to Nerkin Hand is contradictory: on the one hand, it is confirmed by the Secretary of the Security Council of the Republic of Armenia and the Head of the European Union observation mission, on the other hand, it is denied by the National Security Service, while the Prime Minister says an investigation has been launched based on relevant reports.
Nane Manasyan
