Azerbaijan says Armenia’s ‘manipulation’ of UN Security Council ‘counter-productive’

ISTANBUL (AA) – Azerbaijan has said that Armenia’s “manipulation” and “exploitation” of the UN Security Council is “counter-productive and utterly destructive” in terms of taking the process of normalization between Baku and Yerevan forward.

“Armenia’s attempt to instrumentalize the UN Security Council in its campaign of blackmailing failed for yet another time,” the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a statement following a meeting of the UN Security Council on the situation in the Lachin road area.

The statement said it hoped Armenia realizes that the solution to regional issues lay in “constructive engagement and good-faith implementation of international law, and commitments undertaken within this framework.”

It further said that the basis for peace and stability in the region is “a recognition of sovereignty and territorial integrity both in words and deeds” as emphasized by numerous UN Security Council members during the meeting.

It expressed Azerbaijan’s appreciation of the statements made by several Security Council members on the need for such dialogue and engagement regarding the opening of routes proposed by Azerbaijan, especially the Aghdam-Khankendi road, to deliver goods to meet the needs of Armenian residents of the Karabakh region.

It added that the meeting confirmed that Azerbaijan’s proposal on the use of the Aghdam-Khankendi road was received positively and Armenia’s obstructions in this regard need to be abandoned.

“Moreover, acknowledgment of legitimate security concerns of Azerbaijan by some member states is a promising step toward overcoming certain challenges in the region,” the statement said.