The Azerbaijani president says a new peacekeeping center will monitor implementation of the ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh.
According to Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, Russia has a special role in the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, will carry out peacekeeping tasks in Karabakh jointly with Turkey. The Azerbaijani president also said that Armenia has to return the Kalbajar district to Azerbaijan by November 15 and the Lachin district by December 1, while Agdam must be returned to Azerbaijani control by November 20. Baku and Yerevan have to exchange prisoners as well as the deceased, he also noted.
Russian peacekeepers will remain in Nagorno-Karabakh for five years, with automatic extension by five-year terms, if Baku and Yerevan agree.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the Russian peacekeeping contingent of 1,960 servicemen is being deployed along the contact line in Karabakh and the Lachin corridor and will include 90 armored personnel carriers and 380 items of equipment.
The agreement on cessation of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh puts an end to the settlement of the conflict in the unrecognized republic, Azerbaijani President Aliyev said.
Aliyev called the new ceasefire agreement historic and said it would end bloodshed and lead to a long-lasting peace.
Earlier, the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan adopted a joint statement on the cessation of hostilities in Karabakh.
A military confrontation between Armenia and Azerbaijan along the contact line in the Nagorno-Karabakh region erupted on September 27. Coming after the escalation, Yerevan declared martial law and – for the first time – general mobilisation, while partial mobilisation was introduced by Baku.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
