Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan’s interview to #BBCNewshour

BBC: Minister Mnatsakanyan, why did Armenian force break the ceasefire?

Zohrab Mnatsakanyan: Don’t put the blame on us. Armenia has been fully committed to its agreement that we have reached yesterday to establish a ceasefire. Now if you are blaming us then I am putting a question - put the verification mechanism in place; make Azerbaijan agree to it and then find the blaming person. So, they are the perpetrator. So that is exactly the policy of Azerbaijan to exchange blames and to get the license to continue the aggression. This is what they are doing, they have been doing all the time and doing it now: total disrespect and disregard of their commitments, continued aggression, continued devastation of the civilian population. This is appalling. This is absolutely unacceptable.

BBC: So you deny categorically what the Azerbaiajni defense ministry is saying which is that it was you- the Armenian army, that broke the ceasefire first just after it came into force.

Zohrab Mnatsakanyan: It came into force at midnight. We have already been registering violations from the Azerbaijani side minutes after the enter into force of this agreement. There has been relative calm at night. At 7:20 they have started the massive operation, offensive operation against Nagorno-Karabakh. About 7:20 in the morning this was the case which our defense ministry and the defense forces of Nagorno-Karabakh have reported on which we have made a statement. This is verifiable clearly. We have been very clear about this: there is no way we will accept any blame; there is no way we will accept these equation marks that are, you know, offered. And which is basically a license for Azerbaijan to continue this aggression.