Armenia PM says Karabakh situation has deteriorated

PanARMENIAN.Net - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan told a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, January 12 that due to Azerbaijan’s blocking of Lachin Corridor, the situation in Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) has worsened.

According to him, new problems have emerged due to the failure of the electricity supply line, which results in power outages.

Pashinyan noted that kindergartens do not work amid food shortages, people are losing their jobs, which makes the social situation even harder.

The Prime Minister believes that Azerbaijan is thus trying to break the will of the NK people to live in their homeland, adding that this will is unbreakable.

The Armenian PM also noted that the blockade of the Lachine Corridor is a provocation, the ultimate goal of which is a new military escalation, and that steps desirable for those developing such a scenario should be avoided.

Weighing in on what Armenia needs to do, Pashinyan said diplomatic agencies should redouble their efforts to increase the international visibility of the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno Karabakh and make it a subject of discussion in international courts.

Since December 12, the sole road connecting Nagorno Karabakh to Armenia - the Lachin Corridor - has been blocked by self-described Azerbaijani environmentalists. Karabakh residents have reported food and fuel shortages, while hospital patients don't have access to essential medicines, with only a handful allowed transfer to facilities in Armenia proper.