White House Urges Azerbaijan To 'Stop Immediately', As Blinken Speaks With Aliyev, Pashinyan

Washington D.C./20.09.23/Turan:    The White House on Tuesday expressed 'deep concern' about the escalating hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh and urged Azerbaijan 'stop immediately' and return back to the negotiation table, TURAN's U.S. correspondent reports.

"The United States is deeply concerned by Azerbaijan’s military actions in Nagorno-Karabakh," National Security Council Spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement.

"We urge Azerbaijan to immediately stop these hostilities, which are worsening a dire humanitarian situation, and engage in dialogue with representatives of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh," she added.

Watson's comments came as Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke separately with both Azerbaijani President Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan.

Blinken urged Azerbaijan to "cease military actions in Nagorno-Karabakh immediately and deescalate the situation," State Department's Spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a readout.

According to him, the Secretary emphasized that there is no military solution and that the parties must resume dialogue to resolve outstanding differences between Baku and ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.

"The Secretary noted President Aliyev’s expressed readiness to halt military actions and for representatives of Azerbaijan and the population of Nagorno-Karabakh to meet, and he underscored the need for immediate implementation," Miller noted.

During his call with Pashinyan, Blinken similarly expressed the United States’ deep concern for the situation and underscored that Washington was calling on Azerbaijan to immediately cease hostilities and return to dialogue.

"He told Prime Minister Pashinyan the United States fully supports Armenia’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity," Miller noted in a readout.

Alex Raufoglu