RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated at the plenary session of the 7th Eastern Economic Forum that Azerbaijan started the war in 2020 when all the attention of the international community, including Russia, was focused on the problems related to the coronavirus pandemic.

According to him, now that the attention of the entire international community, and especially Armenia's strategic partner, the Russian Federation, is focused on the situation created around Ukraine, there are clear concerns that this may lead to destabilization in the South Caucasus.

He stated: "You know that in 2020 we experienced war, and the situation was similar in that when Azerbaijan started the war, all the attention of the international community, including Russia, was focused on the problems related to the coronavirus pandemic. However, we hope that due to close cooperation with Russia, including our other partners, we will be able to manage and keep the regional situation under control, which is also very important for global security."

Pashinyan also touched on the security challenges. "It must be said that the most famous phrase in the current year is probably that we live in difficult times, but if we look deeper, the question arises: when were the times easy? The history of humanity is a chain of difficult periods, which is why society has invented another formula: any crises bring new dangers and create new opportunities. Now the main problem of countries and governments is managing the risks and noticing and using the options. In that context, the times are also difficult for our region because the challenges that have been present for a long time are emerging or are increasing.