Azerbaijan called Armenia’s proposals on the delimitation and demarcation of the borders between Armenia and Azerbaijan “preconditions,” calling it unacceptable.
Last week Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced that Armenia had put forth a new proposal to advance the process, adding that Russia would convey the details to Azerbaijan.
On Wednesday, speaking in parliament, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan did not give details on Armenia’s proposal, only to say that they reflected the government position that Armenian and Azerbaijani troops would simultaneously withdraw from the border and allow for peacekeeping mechanisms to be enacted until the process is completed.
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov on Wednesday said Armenia’s proposals were unacceptable preconditions and demanded that an immediate and unconditional start of the process, which would be facilitated by Russia, Azatutyun.am reported on Thursday.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev agreed to establish a joint commission on the border delimitation and demarcation process during talks in Sochi on November 26 hosted by President Vladimir Putin of Russia.
Mirzoyan told Parliament on Wednesday that a commission to negotiate the process of delimitation and demarcation of borders has not been established, adding that there are conditions under discussion and circumstances that require clarification.
“We are convinced that unless concrete mechanisms are put in place, concrete steps are taken to increase the stability and security of the border—mechanisms to help prevent further clashes, intentional or sometimes accidental—for technical reasons, it will be difficult to form such a commission and to work,” explained Mirzoyan.
In remarks to Armenpress on Thursday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Vahan Hunanyan rejected Bayramov’s remarks, claiming that Pashinyan and Aliyev agreed to the mutual withdrawal of troops from the border during their December meeting in Brussels, which was mediated by President of the European Council Charles Michel.
Calling Bayramov’s remarks a “misunderstanding,” Hunanyan said that Armenia’s “proposals aren’t preconditions, but rather they are aimed at fulfilling the agreements that were reached. The Republic of Armenia believes that the delimitation process must be launched swiftly based on the aforementioned agreements.”
Armenia’s National Security Chief Armen Grigoryan echoed similar sentiments on Thursday when he spoke to reporters following a weekly cabinet meeting.
“The issue is the simultaneous withdrawal of troops and the deployment of guards along the border based on the map of the Soviet Union. It is also about the creation of favorable conditions which will help us to be able to start the border delimitation and demarcation process,” Grigoryan said.
He said that Yerevan’s proposals were presented to Baku in writing and claimed to have not received a response yet.
“We are not starting the [delimitation] process with deployment of troops on the border,” Grigoryan said. “Instead, we [Armenia and Azerbaijan] are simultaneously pulling back troops based on a map of the Soviet Union.”
Grigoryan also explained that once the delimitation of demarcation of borders in complete no territory of Armenia will appear in what he called the “neutral zone,” presumably referring to the area, which by Yerevan standards will be guarded by security troops deployed to the border.
Incidentally, Armenia’s Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan last week in a rebuke to the Armenian government’s approach to this process, said the proposal to simultaneously withdraw from the border will leave a significant portion of Armenia’s border population vulnerable and violating their rights.
