Armenia’s army forced Azerbaijan to sign ceasefire treaty: ex-DM

We consider May 12 to be the day of signing ceasefire regime but in reality it was a long lasting process, deputy head of Yerkrapah Volunteer Union, former defense minister Vagharshak Harutyunyan said at a news conference today.

“The key session was held on May 16 where for the first time the contact line was fixed. This is the most important issue. On the next day we started determining the move of the troops. Azerbaijan did not give its consent for only Russian troops and observers. They proposed that after ten days the troops enter the Karabakh borders of 1988. The Azerbaijanis had ambitions and we were to realize it. They agreed to ceasefire to solve the issue of liberated territories through the treaty. I will not say how it happened that it did not happen. I will tell it at proper time,” the former official said.

He described Azerbaijan’s behavior as a tactical trick to gain time.

“When on December 17 they launched the attack, we broke their forces. Our army forced Azerbaijan to sign ceasefire treaty. They had serious fears that we would move forward toward Mirbashir,” the ex-deputy minister said.