UPDATE - US says it does not recognize presidential election in Karabakh region

ADDS MORE QUOTES

By Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - The US said Monday that it does not recognize the results of a presidential election held by Armenians in territories of Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region.

During a press briefing, State Department Spokesman Matthew Miller said the US does not recognize Karabakh as "an independent and sovereign state, and therefore we do not recognize the results of those so-called presidential elections that were announced over the last few days.”

"The United States will continue to strongly support efforts by Armenia and Azerbaijan to resolve outstanding issues through direct dialogue," he added.

Miller also recalled calls made by Secretary of State Antony Blinken over the weekend that appealed for the "immediate and simultaneous opening in the Lachin and Aghdam routes to allow passage of desperately needed humanitarian supplies.”

"We urge the leaders, as the Secretary did in his calls, against taking any actions that raise tensions or distract from this goal," he added.

On Saturday, separatist Armenians in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan held self-proclaimed elections to choose a new separatist president, a move that was not recognized by many countries, including Azerbaijan, Türkiye and the UK as well as the European Union.

Asked about a joint military training exercise held by the US and Armenia near Yerevan on Monday, Miller said it is "a routine exercise that is in no way tied to any other events."

"We routinely train and operate alongside our partners to maintain readiness, and we continuously improve on the interoperability between our armed forces," he said.

On Russia's response to the military training by Armenia and the US, Miller said: "I think that given Russia has invaded two of its neighbors in recent years, it should refrain from lecturing countries in the region about security arrangements."