By Vugar Bayramov, Member of the Parliament of Azerbaijan
After the effective peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenian with support from the European Union and the United States, tensions are again observed in the Caucasus region. Azerbaijan is committed to peace negotiations and its priority is to sign a peace agreement as soon as possible. Despite the declarations of Armenia and Azerbaijan on the mutual recognition of territorial integrity and sovereignty, official Yerevan does not seem interested in the peace yet. The false propaganda created by Armenia around the Lachin road indicates this, once again.
Azerbaijan’s proposal to use the Lachin road for the movement of civilians and medical purposes, and the Aghdam-Khankendi road for cargo transportation, is the most optimal approach to solving the current problems in the region. On a daily basis, free passage of persons of Armenian origin was ensured at the “Lachin” border checkpoint in the direction of Khankendi-Gorus. On the one hand, Azerbaijan provides unimpeded passage within its sovereign rights and offers a way for cargo transportation. On the other hand, Armenian provocation continues. But such provocations are not able to change the existing regional order.
The 26 km long Aghdam-Khankendi road is built according to modern standards and is considered the shortest distance to Khankendi in the region. The Lachin-Khankendi road is 60 km long and connects Eastern Zangezur with Karabakh. The Aghdam-Khankendi road is an internal network in the Karabakh economic region and is an important transport line from this point of view. The use of this road is also important in terms of contribution to the development of the Karabakh economic region as a whole. The intensive use of this road is important as the internal transport and logistics network lays the foundation for economic development.
Meanwhile, the construction of the 44.5 km long Barda-Aghdam road, built according to modern standards too, is about to be completed. This road will be integrated into the 26 km Aghdam-Khankendi road. As a result, this road will allow the formation of an easier and shorter land transport connection between the Karabakh economic region and other regions of Azerbaijan. This is also important from the point of view of the development of the Karabakh economic region. Karabakh, which has sufficient economic potential, has been excluded from development as a result of the 30-year occupation of Armenia.
Recent events have once again confirmed that any agreement in the region is possible only within the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan. The Caucasus is entering a new stage. Azerbaijan defines the rules at this stage as well.
