No need to deploy peacekeepers in Karabakh conflict zone: military

PanARMENIAN.Net - There is no need to deploy peacekeepers in Karabakh conflict zone at the moment: the Armenian troops are capable of curbing Azerbaijan’s provocations, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces told reporters Wednesday, September 30.

According to Col. Gen. Yuri Khachaturov, the Azerbaijani side fired several thousand shells on Armenia’s civilian settlements, frontline positions, and towards the back of the frontline in the last 15 days. “The Armenian side gave an adequate response, causing considerable damage to the rival,” Khachaturov said.

He stressed that unlike the Azerbaijani army, the Armenian forces never open fire on villages and civilians.

Armenian Defense Ministry representatives visit border villages, meet with local residents, inspect the situation, and brief the villagers on measures being taken, Khachaturov said.

According to him, border incidents cannot be ruled out as long as Azerbaijan uses mortars.

The Armenian side has repeatedly proposed that Azerbaijan withdraw snipers and agree to implement mechanisms for investigating border incidents, but Azeris have rejected all such proposals, Khachaturov said.