MOSCOW (AP) — Russian forces are being withdrawn from Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region, where they have been stationed as peacekeepers since the end of a war in 2020, officials of both countries said Wednesday.
In a conference call with journalists, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed reports of the withdrawal but did not give further details. Hikmet Hajiyev, the head of foreign policy in Azerbaijan’s presidential administration, also confirmed the withdrawal, saying it was agreed to by both countries.
Hajiyev did not say why the forces were being withdrawn, but their presence appeared superfluous after Azerbaijan regained full control of the region last year.
The Karabakh region had been under the control of ethnic Armenians until a war in 2020 that resulted in Azerbaijan regaining control of parts of the region.
That war ended with a Russia-brokered cease-fire that called for placing about 2,000 peacekeeping troops in the parts of Karabakh that were still held by Armenians. The forces' duties were to include ensuring free passage on the sole road connecting Karabakh with Armenia.
But Azerbaijan began blocking the road in late 2022, alleging Armenians were using it for weapons shipments and to smuggle minerals, and the Russian forces did not intervene.
After months of increasingly dire food and medicine shortages in Karabakh due to the blockade, Azerbaijan launched a lighting blitz in September 2023 that forced the Karabakh Armenian authorities to capitulate after one day in negotiations mediated by Russian forces.
After Azerbaijan regained full control of Karabakh, which had a population of around 120,000, more than 100,000 of the region’s ethnic Armenians fled, although Azerbaijan said they were welcome to stay and promised their human rights would be ensured.
FILE - Russian peacekeepers' vehicles are parked at a checkpoint on the road to Shusha in the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh, on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020. President Vladimir Putin's spokesman said Wednesday April 17, 2024 that Russian forces are being withdrawn from Azerbaijan's Karabakh region, where they have been stationed as peacekeepers since the end of a war in 2020. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits, File)
SÃO PAULO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 30, 2024--
Emergent Cold Latin America (Emergent Cold LatAm), the region’s largest provider of temperature-controlled storage and logistics solutions, announced today the opening of the largest frozen food warehouse in Chile, located in Talcahuano. This facility also marks the company's most significant expansion in Latin America. Situated in a region renowned globally for its seafood and fruit production and exports, the warehouse represents a strategic enhancement of the local cold chain infrastructure.
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The facility has a storage capacity of 294,000 m³ and 37,000 pallets. This development is expected to generate 150 direct and approximately 500 indirect jobs, bolstering the local economy.
This is Emergent Cold LatAm's first completed construction project in Chile, following the acquisition of Friopacífico in 2021 and subsequent acquisitions of Multifrigo and Hook in 2023. The company now operates nine facilities across several key regions, including Valparaíso, Metropolitan, Biobío, and Los Lagos.
Joaquín Del Campo, Managing Director for the Pacific Region at Emergent Cold LatAm, highlighted the strategic importance of this investment: "We are committed to supporting the Chilean seafood and agriculture industries. The increase in mackerel quotas and the growth in Coho salmon and IQF fruit production require enhanced capacity for temperature-controlled storage, perfectly aligned with this new facility."
Neal Rider, Co-Founder and CEO of Emergent Cold LatAm, emphasized the favorable conditions in Chile for business expansion: "Chile's importance in the global food supply chain make it an important part of our regional investment strategy. This investment is part of our ongoing efforts to support the growth of the seafood and agriculture industries and other sectors requiring cold storage solutions."
The Company is already planning an expansion phase for this new warehouse, which should be completed by early 2025. Total storage capacity following this future expansion will be 389,000 m³, representing a 50% increase in total capacity in the country and double the current availability in the Concepción region.
About Emergent Cold LatAm:
Emergent Cold Latin America ( www.emergentcoldlatam.com ) is the largest provider of temperature-controlled logistics and storage for food in Latin America and the Caribbean. It was founded in August 2021 to meet the need for modern cold chain solutions in the market, and the growing demand from local and global customers. Its main investors include Stonepeak, D1 Capital, and Lineage.
The company continues to invest in building and expanding a cold chain network of the highest quality in order to provide end-to-end solutions for its customers throughout the region. Emergent Cold LatAm currently operates more than 70 cold storage facilities in 11 countries in Latin America, in addition to new warehouses under construction.
New Emergent Cold LatAm warehouse in Talcahuano, Chile. (Photo: Business Wire)
