Monday, January 23 2023 23:05

ArmInfo.Minister of Economy of Armenia Vahan Kerobyan during his speech at the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA), raised the issue of Artsakh  (Nagorno-Karabakh).

He stressed that the humanitarian catastrophe arose due to  Azerbaijan's illegal blockade of the only road linking Artsakh with  the outside world (the Lachin corridor). The minister drew attention  to the fact that 120 thousand people, including 30 thousand children,  are on the verge of a food and humanitarian crisis.

"In these critical conditions, we call on the international  community, especially organizations responsible for combating food  insecurity, to use all available tools to ensure the basic needs of  the population of Nagorno-Karabakh and save them from a humanitarian  catastrophe," Vahan Kerobyan said.

Since December 12, 2022, for 39 days now, the Azerbaijani side, under  a far-fetched environmental pretext, blocked the only road connecting  Artsakh with the outside world. The population of the NKR has been in  a blockade for more than a month, deprived of basic means of  subsistence. Since January 9, Artsakh has been deprived of the  opportunity to receive electricity from Armenia, due to the  destructive actions of Azerbaijan. Rolling blackouts occur on a daily  basis in the republic.  Moreover, from noon on January 12, the enemy  side also interrupted the communication cable that provides the  country's population with Internet and telephone communications.  It  was restored only on January 14, thanks to the efforts of Russian  peacekeepers. We also add that on January 17, around noon, the enemy  side stopped the gas supply to Artsakh. By the evening, through  negotiations, it was possible to restore the gas supply to the NKR.   However, on January 18 in the morning gas supply to Artsakh has been  stopped again. Gas supply was resumed on the evening of January 20,  however on January 22 it was again stopped.