BAKU. June 8 (Interfax) - The latest provocations staged by the Armenian Armed Forces at the contact line with Azerbaijan's Army were linked with the visit to the region by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Azeri Deputy Prime Minister Ali Gasanov said.
"Obviously, some states patronizing Armenia were not pleased with the U.S. state secretary's visit and arranged for this incident to happen. In any case, Armenians showed their real face to the whole world once again," Gasanov, who is also chairman of the State Committee for Refugees and Displaced Persons, told journalists on Friday.
Commenting on Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan's promise to resolutely suppress any provocation targeting the state borders of Armenia and the self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Gasanov said: "The dogs bark, but the caravan goes on."
"This proverb roughly describes the situation Armenia has found itself in. It is not the first time the Armenian authorities have threatened Azerbaijan," Gasanov said.
International mediators' calls to refrain from the use of weapons should certainly be treated positively, he said.
"The countries co-chairing the OSCE [Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe] Minsk Group and other countries have been making statements in the past 20 years, calling on the sides in the Karabakh conflict to refrain from starting a war. However, the question is what steps have been taken by the states making such statements and playing an immediate role in the negotiating process in order to find a solution to the problem and eliminate any need for a war? If one looks at them from this perspective, they are nothing more than empty statements," Gasanov said.
"That is why President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has said more than once that if Armenia refuses to change its position, the Azeri state, its Armed Forces, acting on orders of the supreme commander-in-chief, will be ready to liberate the occupied territories at any moment. This statement made by the head of state more than once is still valid," he said.
"As for Sargsyan's delirious remarks, he can say whatever he wants. He is doing it out of fear. Armenia has found itself in a very difficult situation because its patrons are refusing to help it one by one. And we think that the Russian state, which holds the key to the settlement of the Karabakh problem, will finally voice its objective position on this issue," Gasanov said.
Tensions have been running high near the contact line between the Azeri and Armenian Armed Forces in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone in the past few days.
The Azeri Defense Ministry claims that "Armenian sabotage groups" made several attempts to cross the line, but their attacks were rebuffed. Five Azeri soldiers were killed and several more were injured.