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Azerbaijani Defense Ministry's spokesman Eldar Sabiroglu has been making harsh statements two days in a row. He announced on Tuesday that Azerbaijan's air defense system is able to detect and neutralize any missile fired by the Armenian side. Moreover, the Azerbaijani army, he noted, can strike any target on the territory of Armenia. The Azerbaijani army will take corresponding action should Stepanakert airport open, Sabiroglu said on Wednesday.

Also, Azerbaijani Military Unit Commander, Major General Nizam Osmanov stated on Wednesday that the Azerbaijani army is ready to fulfill all tasks set before it.

Panorama.am held an interview on the matter with expert Tigran Abrahamyan.

The expert points out two reasons for such statements by Azerbaijani top military officials.

“Firstly, these statements came in response to the impressive military exercise held in the Aghdam district in eastern Karabakh recently. It is no secret that any such exercise causes stir among Azerbaijani leadership, accompanied by harsh statements from Baku. The extent of harshness of Azerbaijan’s threats and of its response is directly proportional to the quality of the military exercise held in Artsakh.

Secondly, given the fact that the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group met jointly on October 27 with the Foreign Minister of Armenia Edward Nalbandian and the Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov in Paris and the FMs voiced their commitment to peaceful settlement during the meeting, this statement of the Azerbaijani military leaders could be interpreted in two ways: either the country’s military and political leaders have no consensus on the matter or Azerbaijan was not honest in its remarks and as a rule does everything possible to preserve status quo,” Tigran Abrahamyan said.

Despite the fact that during the Paris meeting, the Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan “reiterated their determination to continue working with the Co-Chairs to reach a peaceful settlement,” several days after that meeting Azerbaijan made understand that it not only departs from the agreements reached but also thinks that peaceful settlement is not the only option, the expert concluded.