Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement today on the first anniversary of last year’s war in Artsakh and condemned Azerbaijan for trying to resolve the Karabakh issue via ethnic cleansing and the recruitment of “armed terrorists”.

The ministry says that Turkey directly supported Azerbaijan’s war effort designed to “deprive the people of Artsakh of the right to live freely and safely in their homeland.”

“The 44-day war, which began on September 27, was accompanied by widespread human rights abuses, war crimes, and other atrocities committed by Azerbaijan. During the hostilities, Azerbaijani armed forces deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure and peaceful settlements, including the capital Stepanakert, with rocket-propelled grenades, including the use of banned weapons, resulting in civilian casualties and destruction,” the statement reads.

The ministry says that Azerbaijan’s anti-Armenian campaign and its continued rejections of international mediation proposals proves that Baku has never been interested in a peaceful settlement of the conflict.

The ministry says that Armenia is committed to resolve the conflict under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group.

"Armenia will resolutely take steps to restore and protect the rights of the people of Artsakh, to achieve a just, comprehensive and local solution to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, and to guarantee the right of Artsakh Armenians to live freely, safely and with dignity in their homeland,” the ministry statement reads.