The European Union is concerned about reports of a renewed disruption of the gas supply to Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), Lead Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano said in a statement on Wednesday, March 23.

Beginning from March 8, over 100,000 residents in Karabakh were deprived of gas for over 10 days, and because the pipeline was damaged in territories currently under Baku's control, the Azerbaijani military would not allow the Armenian side to eliminate the problem. Gas supply resumed on March 19, only to be interrupted again on March 22.

The Azerbaijan armed forces have also been violating the ceasefire and using loudspeakers to spread panic among the population of Nagorno-Karabakh, attempting to force them to leave their homes.

"There is an urgent need to ensure the immediate resumption of the gas supply to the affected local population, in particular in the context of the dire weather conditions, and the EU calls on the authorities in control to allow this to happen," Stano said.

"The European Union is closely following this and other developments in the region and will continue its engagement towards sustainable peace and stability for the South Caucasus."