Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia commented on the statement of Azeri officials on the so-called Artsakh Azerbaijani community and attempts to position it on the same level with NKR residents.

“If genuinely interested in establishment of a dialogue, the official Baku must take steps to organize an intercommunity dialogue with thousands of Armenian refugees of Azerbaijan, to gain a moral right for addressing NKR authorities with a similar request,” Shavarsh Kocharyan said.

“Armenian side believes several components are necessary to create an atmosphere of trust between the conflicting parties. Here belong: abandonment of military rhetoric, non-destruction of cultural heritage, observation of ceasefire, promotion of dialogue between the countries’ civil societies. Baku, however, takes a selective approach to the problem, distorting the reality in pursuit of its goals,” the official stressed, MFA press-service reports.