YEREVAN (Azatutyun.am)—Official Baku has condemned the Spanish government for its “unacceptable” decision to “support a separatist regime established by Armenia on the sovereign territory of Azerbaijan.”

The criticism came after Madrid announced its humanitarian assistance to residents of Nagorno-Karabakh whose ethnic Armenian leader last week appealed to the international community to prevent the starvation of the region that has been in a de facto blockade imposed by Azerbaijan for months.

In a post on its X (Twitter) account Spain’s embassy in Russia said that the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) has decided to support a thousand people displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia.

“The AECID is activating its humanitarian action Acontraelhambre (“Action Against Hunger”) to help 1,000 people in Armenia displaced due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” it said in a post made in Armenian. “A total of 250 families will receive financial, psychological and social assistance,” it added.

Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Aykhan Hajizade said in response that Baku “strongly condemns this unconstructive approach.”

“It is strange to see a country fighting separatism on its own territory while supporting separatism in other countries. Spain’s support for the illegal separatist regime established by Armenia on the sovereign territory of Azerbaijan is unacceptable. We strongly condemn this unconstructive approach,” Hajizade said.

Spain did not respond to the criticism immediately.

Later on Tuesday Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry also summoned Spain’s charge d’affaires in the country over the matter.

Amid severe shortages of basic foodstuffs, medical and fuel supplies experienced by Nagorno-Karabakh’s Armenians, Armenia last Friday officially asked the United Nations Security Council to hold an emergency meeting regarding the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation Jose Manuel Albares Bueno was one of the top foreign diplomats that Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan has held phone calls with over the past several days to present the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh that Yerevan blames on Azerbaijan.

As he spoke to Bueno, Mirzoyan reportedly emphasized “the seriousness of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and the lack of necessary medical care resulting from the complete blockade of the Armenian-populated region since June 15, especially for the most sensitive groups such as 30,000 children, 20,000 elderly and 9,000 persons with disabilities.”