The Kremlin said Pashinian briefed Putin on the results of his February 18 meeting in Munich with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and his “other conversations with foreign partners.” It said they also touched upon the implementation of Armenian-Azerbaijani agreements brokered by Russia and “the current situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.”
“Contacts on this matter at various levels will continue,” the Kremlin added in a statement on the call which it said took place “at the initiative of the Armenian side.”
An Armenian readout of the call likewise said the two men “exchanged thoughts on the process of normalizing relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.”
It said Pashinian also raised with Putin “the humanitarian, ecological and energy crisis” in Nagorno-Karabakh caused by Azerbaijan’s continuing blockade of the Lachin corridor. He again urged Moscow to take “necessary steps to overcome it.”
Pashinian made the same appeal during his previous phone call with Putin reported on January 31.
Armenian leaders have repeatedly accused Russian peacekeepers of doing little to unblock the sole road connecting Karabakh to Armenia. Moscow has rejected the criticism.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called on Azerbaijan to end the blockade when he spoke with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov by phone on January 17. Lavrov is scheduled to visit Baku next week.
The U.S. State Department indicated on Wednesday that European Union chief Charles Michel is due to host another Aliyev-Pashinian meeting next week. The Armenian government’s press office did not confirm the information on Thursday. It said later in the day that Pashinian will fly to Berlin on March 2 on a two-day visit during which he will meet with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Earlier this week, the Russian Foreign Ministry again accused the EU and the United States of using the Karabakh conflict to try to squeeze Russia out of the South Caucasus.
