YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 14, ARMENPRESS. The Great Britain-Armenia friendship group at the UK parliament condemned the Azerbaijani aggression against Armenia.

UK Member of Parliament Tim Loughton released a statement from the All Party Parliamentary Group for Armenia on the latest aggression by Azerbaijan:

“In the last 24 hours Azerbaijan has unleashed new brutal attacks on the sovereign territory of Armenia, stretching across the Syunik, Gegharkunik and Vayotc Dzor provinces. It is not only attacking military bases but civilian communities and infrastructure. These attacks are not targeted on the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region but on internationally recognised sovereign boundaries of Armenia itself and were entirely unprovoked and without justification.

Armenia’s Ministry of Defence confirmed that at 00:05 on September 13, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces began intensive shelling of Armenian positions from artillery and large-calibre guns, also utilizing UAVs. The APPG expresses its strongest condemnation of the Azerbaijan regime for this latest act of violence and extends our deep concern for the victims and their families.

These acts of aggression have clearly been timed to take advantage of the world’s attention being diverted to events in Ukraine and most recently the widespread mourning for the death of Queen Elizabeth, and such aggressive opportunism needs to be condemned in the strongest terms and met with a robust response.

There is a very urgent need for the international community, including the UK to condemn Azerbaijan and to call it to account for these latest war crimes. We urgently request the UK Government to join other nations in demanding an immediate end to the Azerbaijan aggression and bring forward sanctions for as long as it continues its unjustified actions. We also ask the UK Government to support the request to the United Nations to consider the matter in emergency session and put its weight behind an ending of this hostile action.

The Azerbaijan regime still needs to be held properly accountable for its war crimes committed against Armenia and the people of Nagorno-Karabakh a couple of years ago and it is clear that it continues to have only a passing acquaintance with the international rule of law and standards expected to qualify as a decent and responsible nation.

Tim Loughton MP

Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Armenia in the UK Parliament.”