"The statement made by the Speaker of the Armenian Parliament Alen Simonyan on social networks regarding the establishment of a border checkpoint on the Lachin-Khankandi road is unacceptable," the Press Service of the Milli Majlis (Azerbaijani Parliament) stated in the press release regarding the statement of the Speaker of the Parliament of Armenia Alen Simonyan on the establishment of a border checkpoint at the beginning of the Lachin-Khankandi road by the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ednews reports.
"This is another attempt to interfere in the internal affairs of Azerbaijan and does not contribute to peace and tranquility in the region," Press Service of the Milli Majlis noted.
Noted that the Armenian officials, as well as the speaker of the parliament, should refrain from using the international community as a tool for a smear campaign against Azerbaijan, including distorting the well-known decision of the International Court of Justice for this purpose.
It should be emphasized that ensuring border security, including movement security, is a necessary condition for national security, state sovereignty, and the rule of law. It is the legitimate right of the Government of Azerbaijan to prevent systematic and large-scale abuse of the Lachin road for illegal purposes and to ensure border security. This decision of the Government of Azerbaijan also serves the purpose of preventing illegal activity and promoting orderly entry and exit to the country's territory.
"The claims of the Armenian side that this decision allegedly contradicts the trilateral statement of the leaders of Azerbaijan, the Russian Federation and Armenia dated November 10 are completely unfounded and far from the truth. It is Armenia that grossly violated the provisions of the mentioned statement and used the Lachin road for illegal military purposes during the past period. In particular, contrary to paragraph 4 of the tripartite statement, the rotation of the personnel of the Armenian armed forces remaining in the territory of Azerbaijan and the transportation of weapons and ammunition were carried out. Transporting landmines by road and then burying them in the sovereign territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan caused particularly serious consequences, as a result of mine explosions, a large number of Azerbaijani citizens were killed and injured.
Azerbaijan fully ensures the unimpeded movement of citizens, vehicles and humanitarian goods through the Lachin road.
We call on the Armenian side to refrain from actions that will increase tension in the region, to obstruct peace negotiations under various pretexts, to take a responsible approach to efforts to establish relations with Azerbaijan based on the principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty of the countries," the statement said.
