Armenian FM hosts heads of diplomatic missions in Armenia, speaks of  Azerbaijan`s aggression 

ArmInfo.Armenia`s FM Ararat Mirzoyan hosted the heads of foreign diplomatic missions in Armenia. 

"The goal of our meeting is to inform you of the details of  provocative and aggressive actions by the Azerbaijani side on the  Armenian-Azerbaijani border," Mr Mirzoyan said in his opening speech.   He noted that the Azerbaijani armed forces` infringement upon  Armenia`s sovereign territory on November 16 was preceded by a  similar attempt on November 14.  

"At noon, to be precise, at 1:00pm on November 14, Azerbaijani armed  forces entered the territory of the Republic of Armenia and  surrounded four string points. 

"As a result of negotiations, the Azerbaijani military personnel and  equipment left the Armenian territory.  But the tension was not  defused, and yesterday, at about the same time and near the same  section, another infringement occurred with the use of armored  vehicles and artillery of different calibers. In fact, we can state  that the Azerbaijani side used anything but aircraft," Minister  Mirzoyan said. The Armenian side retaliated, he added.

Mr Mirzoyan described Azerbaijan`s actions as an aggression against  Armenia.  "At 6:30pm yesterday, with the Russian side`s mediation the  hostilities ended. However, as a result of the infringement the  Azerbaijani troops are still present at the section in question. I  would like to inform you that at present the Armenian side has one  killed and 12 captured servicemen, and the fate of another 24  servicemen remains unknown. Search operations are in progress with  the Russian side`s participation.  "It is obvious that those actins  were preceded by clear anti-Armenian aggressive statements, overt  threats of use of force  an claims on the territory of the Republic  of Armenia by the Azerbaijani leadership, as well as the so-called  `corridor logic` - statements on the aspirations to get a corridor,  including direct statements on capturing a corridor by force,"  Minister Mirzoyan said. 

The Armenian FM stressed that Baku`s behavior results from the fact  that Armenia`s international partners and the international community  did not properly and selectively respond to Azerbaijan using force  during its aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh launched on September  27 last year, as well as during the following months.  "We are  convinced that the international community did not properly and  selectively respond to all the aforementioned provocative and  aggressive statements by Azerbaijan. Continuous statements equaling  the parties were perceived by Azerbaijan as an encouragement of its  behavior. We expect our partners and friendly nations to immediately  and selectively respond to these actions and use their influence on  the Republic of Azerbaijan by calling on it to stop its provocations  and infringements upon the Republic of Armenia. I would also like to  inform you that, under the UN Charter, and all the bilateral and  multilateral agreements, the Republic of Armenia reserves the right  to defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty.  From this  moment on, the Republic of Azerbaijan will bear the responsibility  for further escalation.  "I would also like to speak of another  political nuance. We are convinced that by shifting the tension to  the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, Azerbaijan is seeking to divert the  international attention from the Nagorno- Karabakh problem. I would  once more stress that the Republic of Armenia will defend its  territorial integrity as well as the Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians`  right to self-determination," Minister Mirzoyan said.  

In conclusion, he answered the attendees` questions