Shushi-Berdzor-Goris road section open for two-way traffic – Artsakh interior ministry

YEREVAN, AUGUST 24, ARMENPRESS. The Shushi-Berdzor-Goris road rection of the interstate highway connecting Artsakh with Armenia is open for two-way traffic, the Ministry of Interior of Artsakh said.

In a statement, the ministry added that the free and safe passage of citizens entering Artsakh or traveling to Armenia is ensured by the Russian peacekeepers.

In early August, it was announced that the residents of the town of Berdzor and the village of Aghavno in Artsakh must evacuate by August 25 because Azerbaijan completed the construction of the new corridor from its side that would connect Artsakh with Armenia and demanded the corridor be relocated to a new route.

On August 17, the counselor-envoy at the Russian embassy in Armenia Maxim Seleznyov told RFE/RL’s Armenian service in an interview that the Russian peacekeepers will not move from their current deployment positions in Lachin corridor until the new road is commissioned.

On August 23 Artsakh lawmakers had a meeting with the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent. Citing the 9 November 2020 trilateral statement, the Russian peacekeepers said that the new route will have the same legal status of a corridor and all security components will be maintained, starting from the 5km security zone and the deployment of Russian peacekeeping checkpoints.