President says Armenia will recognize Nagorno-Karabakh independence if fighting expands
Armenia will formally recognize Nagorno-Karabakh Republic's independence if the fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh expands, President Serzh Sargsyan said on Monday at a meeting with ambassadors of the OSCE member countries in Yerevan.
"The Republic of Armenia, as a signatory to the 1994 cease-fire agreement, will continue to fully comply with its obligations to ensure the security of Nagorno-Karabakh population. Moreover, I have instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to begin work on the conclusion of a mutual military assistance agreement with Karabakh. I have to mention and I spoke about that many times, that if military actions continue and take a broader scope, the Republic of Armenia will recognize the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic," Sargsyan is quoted as saying by his press service.
According to the Armenian President, further escalation of hostilities may have unpredictable and irreversible consequences, up to large-scale war.
"This, of course, will affect the security and stability not only of the South Caucasus but also of the European region," he stressed.
According to the President, it is obvious that a cessation of hostilities and a peaceful settlement of the problem also stems from European countries’ interest.
"The OSCE, as a structure, which plays a key role in ensuring security in Europe, is reserved a special role in this regard," said Sargsyan
Heavy fighting continued in and around Nagorno-Karabakh on Monday, with Karabakh Armenian forces saying that they went on the counteroffensive and regained territory seized by the Azerbaijani army the previous day.
According to the NKR Defense Army, they have destroyed so far 2 helicopters, 20 tanks, one missile system Grad, heavy flame-throwing systems TOS-1, 5 armored vehicles, including 1 infantry fighting vehicle, 1 unit of engineering machinery and 6 Azerbaijani drones killing also over 200 Azeri soldiers. The Armenian side lost one tank, 18 people were killed, and about 40 wounded. -0-