Blinken warns of a possible next Azerbaijan attack on Armenia

Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned a small group of lawmakers last week that his department is monitoring the possibility that Azerbaijan could soon invade Armenia, according to two people familiar with the report, Politico.com reported. conversation.

The call indicates the administration's deep concern about Azerbaijan's operations against a breakaway region in the country's west and the possibility that the conflict will spread to Armenia itself

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev previously called on Armenia to open a "corridor" along the southern border, linking mainland Azerbaijan to an exclave bordering Turkey and Iran. Aliyev threatened to resolve the issue "by force". Here's what the issue looks like:

In an Oct. 3 phone call, the lawmakers pressed Blinken on possible measures against Aliyev in response to his country's invasion of the Nagorno-Karabakh region in September, said the people, who were granted the anonymity to discuss the sensitive call.

Blinken responded that the State Department is looking for ways to hold Azerbaijan accountable and has no plans to renew a long-standing waiver that allows the United States to provide military assistance to Baku. He added that his ministry sees the possibility of Azerbaijan invading southern Armenia in the coming weeks.

Armenia remains a member of the CSTO , the NATO-like defense military alliance that includes Russia, Belarus, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan. A direct attack on an alliance country, as happens with the Western alliance, would lead to its activation. and therefore to Russia's intervention.

However, Blinken expressed confidence about the ongoing diplomatic talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan to Democratic lawmakers, including Representatives Nancy Pelosi and Anna Eshoo of California and Frank Pallone of New Jersey. Two other people confirmed that a briefing on the situation in Azerbaijan had taken place, but provided no details.

In a statement, the State Department declined to comment on the request but emphasized the department's commitment to "the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Armenia" and to resolving the conflict through "direct talks."

The decision to postpone the renewal of the exemption is also significant. Every year since 2002, the United States has issued the waiver, allowing it to circumvent a provision of the Freedom Support Act that bars the United States from providing military assistance to Azerbaijan in light of its ongoing territorial disputes with Armenia. The waiver expired in June, and the state had previously provided no explanation as to why it had not yet requested a renewal. In the meantime, the very close relations between Baku and Ankara guarantee a continuous supply of weapons.

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The article Blinken warns of a possible next Azerbaijan attack on Armenia comes from Economic Scenarios .

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This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/blinken-avverte-di-un-possibile-prossimo-attacco-dellazerbaigian-allarmenia/ on Sat, 14 Oct 2023 05:30:22 +0000.