U.S. urges Armenia, Azerbaijan to uphold their ceasefire commitments

Washington on Wednesday expressed its condemnation of "the recent escalation of violence along the international border between Armenia and Azerbaijan."

"We call on Armenia and Azerbaijan to uphold their ceasefire commitments by taking immediate steps to de-escalate the situation," the State Department said in a late night statement, TURAN's U.S. correspondent reports.

Earlier in the day, Phillip Reeker, the acting assistant secretary for the Bureau of Europe and Eurasia, had discussed the issue with Azerbaijan's foreign minister, according to Azeri MFA..

Continued tensions along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border "underscore the fact that only a comprehensive resolution that addresses all outstanding issues can normalize relations between the two countries and allow the people of the region to live together peacefully," reads the State Department's statement.  

The United States "urges Armenia and Azerbaijan to return as soon as possible to substantive discussions under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs to achieve a long-term political settlement to the conflict,"

The move comes just hours after the U.S. House passed H.R. 4373 "Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2022" which includes an amendment led by Congressman Frank Pallone and his Congressional Armenian Caucus colleagues, prohibiting funds to Azerbaijan under the International Military Education and Training Program and the Foreign Military Financing Program.

A.Raufoglu

Washington D.C.