YEREVAN, JULY 8, ARMENPRESS. First Deputy Chair of the Russian Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs Vladimir Dzhabarov highlighted the fact that Armenian caretaker Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan paid his first visit to Moscow after the victory in the June 20 snap parliamentary elections.

He called Pashinyan’s this step as a “good sign”.

During an online Moscow-Yerevan discussion, Mr. Dzhabarov stated that Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin have discussed working issues, the situation in the region, Karabakh, the Russian peacekeeping mission, etc.

According to him, sooner or later Armenia and Azerbaijan must normalize their relations and start restoring their countries after the shocks, and the presence of the Russian peacekeepers is a guarantee for avoiding possible bloodsheds in the future.

Vladimir Dzhabarov said the deployment of the Russian border guards on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border will be carried out by the consent of Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Commenting on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s statements on creating a military base in the territory of Azerbaijan, Mr. Dzhabarov said Russia views it very negatively, adding that Moscow has a chance to pressure Turkey, and Turkey doesn’t want an opponent in the person of Russia.

He reminded that Turkey has never been Russia’s ally, adding that Turkey’s geopolitical interests do not always coincide with those of Russia and its allies in Caucasus.

Talking about the issue of the return of Armenian prisoners of war from Azerbaijan, the Russian politician said Azerbaijan is artificially arresting the Armenian POWs, presenting them as criminals.

Dzhabarov assured that the Russian leadership makes all efforts to solve this issue.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan