YEREVAN, MARCH 26, ARMENPRESS. France expressed concern over the Azerbaijani military advance in Nagorno Karabakh.

“France expresses regret over the recorded incidents in Nagorno Karabakh, particularly the armed incidents and the troop advance in Parukh and Khramort regions. France calls on the forces, which, as reported, have advanced, to pull back to their initial positions in accordance to the November 9 2020 ceasefire statement,” the French foreign ministry said in a statement.

The French foreign ministry also expressed concern over the gas supply cut-off in Nagorno Karabakh, demanding the restoration of the supply. It said that this issue has been noted during the French foreign minister’s phone calls with Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts.

On March 24-25 the Azerbaijani troops attacked Artsakh military positions and invaded the Parukh village.

Azeri drone strikes killed 3 Artsakh troops and wounded 15 others.

On March 8, the authorities of Artsakh said that the main pipeline supplying gas from Armenia to Artsakh was damaged and the supply was stopped.

The Artsakh authorities had said the area where the damage occurred was in Azerbaijani-controlled territory. It was reported that the Azerbaijani military deliberately damaged the pipeline.

The Azerbaijani authorities obstructed repair works for days. Only on March 16 the authorities in Artsakh announced that the Azerbaijani side itself began the repair work. However, days later, the gas supply was cut again. Authorities said they have reasons to believe that during the repairs the Azeri authorities installed a valve on the pipeline in order to shut it down whenever they want.

Meanwhile, the population of Artsakh is without gas and heating amid freezing temperatures and snowfalls. The Artsakh foreign ministry described Azerbaijan’s actions as humanitarian terrorism.

The Armenian Foreign Ministry said the current situation emphasizes the urgency of clear response of the international community towards preventing the humanitarian crisis.

On March 22 the Human Rights Defender of Armenia Kristinne Grigoryan and the Human Rights Defender of Artsakh Gegham Stepanyan issued a joint statement, calling on international human rights organizations to pressure Azerbaijan and eliminate its gross and continuous human rights violations against the Armenians of Artsakh.

On March 23, the FM of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan said they utilized all diplomatic efforts to resolve the situation.

On March 23, the European Union expressed its concerns.

On March 24, Freedom House urged Azerbaijan to prevent humanitarian crisis and restore gas supplies to Artsakh.