It is more than a day that Azerbaijani eco-activists and NGO representatives hold protests in the city of Shusha- Lachin road. Protesting against the illegal exploitation of mineral deposits in the Azerbaijani territories under the temporary control of Russian peacekeepers, Azerbaijanis demand that the separatists and third parties stop environmental terrorism.
Setting up tents on the site activists who continued the action throughout the night, since yesterday, have been demanding that the commander of the Russian peacekeeping contingent, Major General Andrey Volkov, come to the area and meet with them. If this request was implemented, a peaceful protest would have ended long ago, and the Armenians who spent the night in the Lachin corridor due to the action could easily go about their business. However, general Volkov seemed determined not to meet, on the contrary, he dresses up peacekeepers with heavy weapons and armored vehicles and sends them in droves against the peaceful protestors.
Despite the tension that emerged, blocking of Lachin road, the Russian general still insists on not meeting with eco-activists.
According to the tripartite statement signed by Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders on November 10, 2020, one of the key duties of Russian peacekeepers deployed in the region is to assist to eliminate complicated situations that emerged in the area of responsibility and contribute to the establishment of sustainable peace and prosperity in the region. However, general Volkov's avoiding meeting with peaceful protesters on Lachin road strengthens reasonable suspicions regarding the activity of the peacekeepers.
This shows that Andrey Volkov is not interested in easing tension, on the contrary, he wants the action to continue, the Lachin corridor allocated for humanitarian purposes to remain closed, and disagreements between Armenians and Azerbaijanis to continue.
A meeting of the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia is planned in the coming weeks. The current tensions may significantly reduce (and possibly other planned) the effectiveness of the meeting in the direction of strengthening peace and stability. Only those parties who are concerned about the comprehensive settlement between Azerbaijan and Armenia may be interested in this.
The fact that General Volkov did not come to the territory and tried to maintain a tense situation shows that he was a participant in this process, which served the interests of those third parties.
In general, peacekeepers temporarily stationed in Azerbaijan were not expected to play the role of a shield for the separatists. They have to protect everyone, all civilians, and contribute to maintaining peace, stability, and peace in the region under their responsibility. However, the events we have witnessed in recent days show a completely different situation. Against the background of recent processes, it is felt that the peacekeepers have become patrons and guarantors of separatist activities in the region. This bias not only undermines the peace process but also deepens the enmity between the parties and does not allow the wounds to heal.
We can mention an example of the visit of Azerbaijani ecologists to the mines in the territories under the temporary control of the peacekeepers based on the pre-arranged agreement with the commander of the Russian peacekeepers, Volkov.
In fact, the peacekeepers didn’t prevent those who hinder the implementation of civilian monitoring, on the contrary, they moved aside and set Azerbaijani state officials against local Armenians and created obvious conditions for provocation. Certainly, if they wanted, they would be able to prevent this pre-scripted show of the Armenians. We know this ability of theirs from them preventing Azerbaijani journalists from carrying out their professional activities in the region just a few days before the monitoring.
However, what occurred gives reason to conclude that it was Volkov himself who created conditions for pre-trained Armenian separatists to come to that area and obstruct the monitoring, and as if this wasn’t enough, he tried to get Ruben Vardanyan, who was sent by Moscow on a special mission to Khankendi, to enter the circuit as a legitimate representative of the authorities. However, the members of the monitoring group, who understand well what this scenario serves, naturally refused to discuss anything with a criminal who has no legitimacy. It seems that Volkov, the one whose planned scenario with Vardanyan was wasted, is working on new ideas to escalate the situation.
It has been a long time since such a biased position of the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent against our country has gone to the obvious ground, and on this background, General Volkov claims that a campaign is being conducted against the peacekeepers.
The fact that he resolutely refused to meet with the protesters suggests that the main factor that overshadows the activities of the peacekeeping contingent is General Volkov himself. The contribution of the General to remain tense in the region in this way proves that he is interested in the current tension or he is a participant in the plan of the interested parties, in this process. This once shows that the Russian peacekeepers are neither interested in fulfilling their duties nor in contributing to the de-escalation of tensions in the region, and they are acting contrary to their duties. Probably, If Volkov had come to the area where the protest was held yesterday and met with eco-activists and representatives of NGOs, the protest would end and the situation would not be such tense. But he is still determined not to come to the area and seems to be personally interested in maintaining tension and blocking the road over the Lachin Corridor.
Unfortunately, the current activity (read - inactivity) of peacekeepers serves to prevent the achievement of sustainable peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the integration of Karabakh Armenians into Azerbaijan, where they are citizens, and the maintenance of enmity between nations. And this undermines hopes and expectations of them, hurts Russia's image, and reduces trust between countries. And finally, the Armenian population living in Karabakh should understand that the Russian peacekeepers and their commander, General Volkov are guilty of their blockade and preventing their return to normal life, but not Azerbaijan, the eco-activists who are conducting a peaceful protest on the Lachin road.
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