Armenia and Azerbaijan have exchanged accusations again, just two days before new talks aimed at reaching a peace agreement to resolve a decades-long conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Recent peace negotiations have made progress in the past few weeks, with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan acknowledging Azerbaijan's control over Karabakh.
However, Armenia accused Azerbaijan of threatening to resort to force after its President Ilham Aliyev demanded the dissolution of the "separatist" local government in Karabakh. A statement from the Armenian Foreign Ministry, reported by the Armen Press news agency, said, "Aliyev is issuing threats of genocide and paving the way for another aggressive action against the residents of Nagorno-Karabakh." Aliyev stated, "After Azerbaijan's successes in the 2020 war, it is time for Armenians to abandon the delusions of the independence of Karabakh."
He added in a speech broadcast on Azerbaijani state television: "This means adhering to the laws of Azerbaijan, becoming normal and loyal citizens, throwing fake state symbols into the trash, and dissolving the so-called parliament." The Nagorno-Karabakh region remains a long-standing point of contention between the two countries, along with border demarcation, the return of prisoners, and the establishment of trade "corridors" passing through each other's territories.
