Karabakh Official Says No Date For Opening Stepanakert Airport Yet

Karabakh Official Says No Date for Opening Stepanakert Airport Yet

There is no specific data for opening the Stepanakert airport in the breakaway republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Davit Babayan, an adviser to the Karabakh president, told Sputnik on Wednesday

YEREVAN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th December, 2020) There is no specific data for opening the Stepanakert airport in the breakaway republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Davit Babayan, an adviser to the Karabakh president, told Sputnik on Wednesday.

The Russian peacekeeping force on Tuesday said that the airport could be opened this Friday, as its surrounding territory had been cleared of mines and the facilities were ready for use.

"There is no specific day yet, but we know that the airport will definitely function and become an important transport hub not only for Artsakh [the republic's self-designation] but for the whole region," Babayan said.

The airport was built in 1974 and was mostly used for flights to Baku and Yerevan. During the armed conflict in Karabakh in the early 90s, the airport was used for military purposes. Later, it underwent reconstruction and was ready for use in 2012, however, Azerbaijan warned that it would consider flights to Stepanakert to be violations of its airspace.