Blinken Emphasizes Importance of Free Transit Through Lachin Corridor in Call with Aliyev

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during a phone call with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, highlighted the necessity of free transit through the Lachin Corridor, according to the State Department.

"Blinken emphasized the need for unhindered transit of commercial, humanitarian, and private vehicles through the Lachin Corridor," the statement on the U.S. Department of State's website reads.

During the conversation, the Secretary of State expressed support for negotiations on a peaceful resolution between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Azerbaijani State Border Service announced a temporary suspension of operations at the Lachin checkpoint due to "smuggling activities." That same day, Blinken spoke with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who noted the need to overcome the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh, which has arisen due to Azerbaijan's blockade of the Lachin Corridor.

Azerbaijan established a border checkpoint along the Lachin route on April 23, 2023. On December 12, 2022, the Azerbaijani side had closed the Stepanakert-Goris roadway (the Lachin Corridor under Russian peacekeeper control), which is the only route connecting Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenian authorities have repeatedly raised the issue of the need to unblock the Lachin Corridor.