Armenia will suspend military inspections by Turkish experts in its territory under the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) due to security threats associated with Ankara's open support of Azerbaijan in the recent escalation, the Armenian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th July, 2020) Armenia will suspend military inspections by Turkish experts in its territory under the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) due to security threats associated with Ankara's open support of Azerbaijan in the recent escalation, the Armenian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.
The ministry said Armenia's permanent mission to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe announced the decision to the member states in a Note Verbale, circulated earlier in the day.
"The Republic of Armenia will suspend military inspections by the Republic of Turkey and guest inspectors from Turkey under the CFE treaty and the Vienna Document on the territory of the Republic of Armenia," the ministry said in a press release, quoting the Note Verbale.
Yerevan said the move was prompted by Ankara's unilateral support of Baku following the escalation of tensions on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, citing, in particular, the freshly-launched Turkey-Azerbaijan large-scale military exercises.
"Any military inspection conducted on the territory of Armenia by Turkey, which has been openly supporting Azerbaijan's military operations against Armenia and resorting to unprecedented threats, particularly since 12th July 2020, will adversely impact the security interests of Armenia and may undermine security of its population," the Armenian ministry said.
The 30 CFE participating countries regularly exchange on-site inspections of armed forces, which they each committed to limit to a certain number under the treaty.
The Armenian-Azerbaijani escalation has been unfolding since July 12 in the northern segment of the border, farther up from the long-disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Armed hostilities have already resulted in the death of 12 servicemen, including a general, on Azerbaijan's end and of five servicemen on Armenia's end.
Turkey, a member of the OSCE Minsk Group designed to promote the peace process, has almost immediately pledged support for Azerbaijan. Earlier in the day, joint Turkish-Azerbaijani drills began close to the Armenian border.
