Armenia’s foreign ministry today criticized Moscow for saying the humanitarian crisis in Karabakh was made possible by Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan’s decision to recognize Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova made the claim on Wednesday in response to criticism from Yerevan that Moscow isn’t doing enough to unblock the Lachon Corridor.

“I would like to remind that the current situation in the Lachin corridor is a consequence of Armenia’s recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh as part of the territory of Azerbaijan,” Zakharova said at a press briefing.

Armenian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ani Badalyan (photo) today accused Russian peacekeepers stationed in and around Nagorno Karabakh of failing to perform their functions as outlined in the Russian-brokered November 2020 ceasefire agreement.

“The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has never been a territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan. In essence, it has always been and remains an issue of the rights and security of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh,” Badalyan said.

Badalyan urged her Russian counterpart “to refrain from manipulating the circumstances of the situation and complicating it in the absence of actions from Russian peacekeepers towards the prevention of the blockade of the Lachin Corridor or its opening afterwards.”