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Many Armenians are glad about the EU mission alongside the border with Azerbaijan, says Markus Ritter, head of the EU mission.

But he is quick to dampen expectations: Observers are not permitted access to Azerbaijani territory. Ritter and his colleagues are therefore unable to detect, for instance, troop movements in preparation of another attack, Deutsche Welle reported on Tuesday.

Armenia and Azerbaijan approved an EU monitoring mission in July last year. Some 100 police officers from various EU countries were assigned to patrol Armenia's border villages and document potential incidents.

"Many Armenians believe there'll be a spring offensive by Azerbaijan. If this doesn't happen, our mission is already a success," Ritter told DW.

Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Aykhan Hajizada responded to Ritter’s claims.

"We strongly condemn the fact that the head of the EU mission, based on the false and slanderous claims of the Armenian side, expressed opinions that Azerbaijan is preparing for any attack, and presented the main task of the EU Mission as "protecting Armenia from Azerbaijan," Azerbaijani media quoted him as saying.

“The EU mission should not give place to false and slanderous claims and should act according to its mandate,” Hajizada added.