Armenia’s ambassador-at-large Edmon Marukyan has said that there still is a chance to prevent total ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) by Azerbaijan.

Marukyan said on Twitter on that France, Russia, the United States, the OSCE and other international actors have put immense efforts for 30 years for finding a peaceful resolution to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict only for Azerbaijani President to confess that his “lifetime mission was to win the war”.

“While we face dire consequences of the 2020 war, unleashed by Aerbaijan against any norm and principle of world order and law, today there is a chance to prevent total ethnic cleansing of Nagorno Karabakh, to protect the rights of 120k Armenians to live with dignity in homeland,” Marukyan added.

Since December 12, 2022, the sole road connecting Nagorno Karabakh to Armenia - the Lachin Corridor - has been blocked by Azerbaijan. Baku tightened the blockade on June 15, 2023, banning emergency relief supplies that were carried out by Russian peacekeepers and the International Committee of the Red Cross through the sole road connecting Karabakh to Armenia and the outside world. The move aggravated the shortages of food, medicine and other essential items experienced by the region’s population.