TBILISI, Sept 18 (Reuters) – U.S. Home of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday condemned what she mentioned had been “unlawful” border assaults by Azerbaijan on Armenia, utilizing a go to to the Russian ally to pledge American assist for its sovereignty.
Pelosi solid her journey to Armenia, a sliver of land the scale of the U.S. state of Maryland that’s wedged between Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Iran, as an try and strengthen assist for what she solid as a beacon of democracy.
Talking within the historical metropolis of Yerevan, Pelosi mentioned her journey had significance following the “unlawful and lethal assaults by Azerbaijan on Armenian territory” that triggered border clashes wherein greater than 200 individuals had been killed.
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“We strongly condemn these assaults,” Pelosi mentioned beside Armenian parliamentary speaker Alen Simonyan, who final week expressed unhappiness with the response of a Russian-led navy alliance to Yerevan’s request for assist. learn extra
Pelosi, who angered China with a visit to Taiwan final month, mentioned it was evident that the border combating was triggered by Azeri assaults on Armenia and that the chronology of the battle ought to be made clear.
The combating “was initiated by the Azeris and there must be recognition of that,” Pelosi mentioned.
Pelosi’s remarks drew an unusually robust rebuke from Baku, which mentioned she was endangering the peace within the Caucasus.
“The unsubstantiated and unfair accusations levelled by Pelosi in opposition to Azerbaijan are unacceptable,” the overseas ministry mentioned in an announcement.
“This can be a severe blow to the efforts to normalize relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the ministry mentioned, casting Pelosi’s remarks as “Armenian propaganda”.
Such a definitive apportioning of blame for the battle goes past what the U.S. State Division has up to now mentioned in public.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has expressed issues over the combating and referred to as for calm however didn’t assign blame.
Blinken urged Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev on a name on Sunday “to stick to the ceasefire, disengage navy forces, and work to resolve all excellent points between Armenia and Azerbaijan by means of peaceable negotiations,” State Division spokesperson Ned Worth mentioned.
Armenia mentioned Azerbaijan shelled no less than six Armenian settlements contained in the border shortly after midnight on Sept. 13, attacking civilian and navy infrastructure with drones and huge calibre weapons. Yerevan mentioned it was unprovoked aggression.
Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey, rejects these claims. Baku says Armenian sabotage models tried to mine Azeri positions, prompting troopers to reply. Armenia says that narrative is Azeri disinformation.
RUSSIA’S BACKYARD
Russia, which repeatedly condemned Pelosi’s go to to Taiwan, considers the Caucasus as its personal sphere of affect and bristles at what it casts as U.S. meddling within the area.
Moscow although, is preoccupied by the warfare in Ukraine which has triggered the largest confrontation with the West because the top of the Chilly Struggle.
Russia is Armenia’s main navy ally, has a navy base in northern Armenia and peacekeepers alongside the contact line in Nagorno-Karabakh, over which Armenia and Azerbaijan fought a warfare in 2020.
President Vladimir Putin mentioned on Friday that Russia had sufficient sources to mediate within the battle. The newest combating ended after a Russian-brokered ceasefire.
However after appeals for assist, the Collective Safety Treaty Group (CSTO), a Russian-led navy alliance of former Soviet republics that features Armenia however not Azerbaijan, selected Tuesday to dispatch a monitoring mission.
Armenian Parliamentary Speaker Simonyan mentioned he was dissatisfied with the response, likening the CSTO to a pistol that didn’t shoot bullets.
Talking beside Pelosi, U.S. Consultant Frank Pallone mentioned america wished to do no matter it may to be extra supportive of Armenia’s safety.
The US, Pelosi mentioned, was listening to Armenia about what its defence wants had been and mentioned Washington wished to assist and assist Armenia in what she solid as a world wrestle between democracy and autocracy.
“We ought to be utilizing our affect, our leverage exhibiting that Armenian democracy and sovereignty is a precedence,” Pelosi mentioned. “The velvet revolution was cheered globally.”
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan rose to energy in 2018 after anti-government protests known as Armenia’s Velvet Revolution.
Pelosi mentioned it was attention-grabbing that Armenia was disillusioned by the response from Russia.
“It’s attention-grabbing that they had been disillusioned they acquired reality finders and never safety from that relationship and we’ll see what occurs subsequent,” she mentioned.
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Writing by Man Faulconbridge; Enhancing by William Maclean, Emelia Sithole-Matarise, Alex Richardson and Daniel Wallis
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