UN hopes ICJ decision will improve relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan

25 Feb. () –

The UN Secretary General, António Guterres, has expressed hope for an improvement in relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia after the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the border crossing linking Armenia with Nagorno Karabagh.

“The Secretary General is pleased with the trust that the governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan have placed in the ICJ by asking it to resolve their differences,” read a statement read by the UN Secretary General’s spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric.

In this sense, Guterres recalled that the decisions of the ICJ “are binding” and trusts that the parties will apply their orders, including the one related to measures to guarantee the unhindered movement of people, vehicles and cargo along the corridor. of Lachin in both directions.

“The Secretary General expresses the hope that Armenia and Azerbaijan will continue to work to improve their bilateral relations and strongly encourages a constructive dialogue,” Dujarric said.

Last Wednesday, the ICJ published a binding order in which it requires Azerbaijan to guarantee the free movement of people, vehicles and cargo in the Lachin corridor, which connects Armenia with the self-proclaimed republic of Nagorno Karabagh.

Yerevan accuses Baku of blocking the area and suspending the gas supply, for which the local authorities – which began to store fuel to avoid a major crisis in the face of the blockade – asked the population to use the car only when necessary, giving priority to ambulances and minimum services.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have been involved in various confrontations in recent years over the control of Nagorno Karabagh, a territory with a majority Armenian population that has been the focus of conflict since it decided to separate in 1988 from the Azerbaijan region integrated into the Soviet Union.