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"Our meeting is taking place in a situation where our compatriots in Artsakh are facing an existential threat. In this regard, I would like to thank my colleague for visiting Armenia during this important period and expressing his solidarity with the Armenian people, "Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan on Friday told a joint press conference with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias, who is on a working visit to Armenia.

Mnatsakanyan stated that both the Mediterranean and South Caucasus regions are currently facing the same threat stemming from Turkey's expansionist policy.

"It is Turkey that has incited the large-scale aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan against the civilian population of Artsakh since September 27 and is directly involved in its implementation, with the use of foreign Islamist militants. Despite the statement on the ceasefire adopted on October 10 by the foreign ministers, Azerbaijan has continued hostilities, hitting also a military facility in Armenia. Yesterday Stepanakert was again bombed,” the minister stressed.

“With all these steps, Azerbaijan clearly shows that it not only refuses to implement the joint agreement of the foreign ministers, but also, with the open instigation of Turkey, seeks to expand and deepen the geography of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, launching attacks and aggression against the sovereign territory of Armenia. Although, as expected, Turkey is behind these Azerbaijani actions, the entire responsibility for their irreversible military-political consequences lies with the Azerbaijani leadership.”

The Armenian foreign policy chief stressed that the large-scale Azerbaijani attacks deliberately targeted the peaceful population of Artsakh, leaving more than 32 civilians killed and 106 others injured, 86 of them seriously.

Six civilian casualties have been reported in Artsakh since October 10, four of whom have been shot dead by an Azeri subversive group.

"Azerbaijan's war crimes have been documented by the same criminals who are spreading the word on the internet, glorifying their actions, including the degrading treatment of the victims and their murder," the foreign minister said.

“In terms of regional security and stability, the decision of the Azerbaijani authorities to turn the country into a zone of Turkish influence and a hotbed of international terror groups in order to grip on power is a threat. The deployment of terrorists is one of the tools of the incumbent Turkish authorities’ expansionist policy," Mnatsakanyan said.

The foreign minister once again expressed Armenia's full support to Greece and Cyprus in connection with the developments in the Mediterranean Sea, calling on Turkey to respect the international law.