Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Wednesday cited “international pressure” as the reason for Yerevan’s decision to pursue peace negotiations with Azerbaijan that include Armenia’s recognition of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity.
“Today the international community is clearly telling us: to be the only country in the world that doesn’t bilaterally recognize the territorial integrity of Turkey’s ally, Azerbaijan, is a big threat not only for Artsakh but for Armenia,” Pashinyan told parliament on Wednesday in a speech during which he also claimed that before the 2020 war he was not fully convinced that returning territories to Azerbaijan would be the correct path for Armenia, despite years of pressure by the international community.
“Today the international community is again telling us: ‘lower your expectations a bit on the issue of Nagorno Karabakh’s status and you will ensure big international consolidation around Armenia and Artsakh,’” Pashinyan said. “Otherwise, the international community says, ‘we ask you not to rely on us, not because we don’t want to help you but because we can’t help you.’”
Pashinyan reflected on his meeting last week with President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan in Brussels, where they agreed to begin the process of drafting a “peace treaty.”
He stated that the preparation for the process must start without delay and expressed hope that the foreign ministries of Armenia and Azerbaijan will be able to implement the tasks within a proper timeframe. He said it’s important to record that the entire international community is showing readiness to support the process, and this opportunity should be really used.
As for the Karabakh issue, Pashinyan told lawmakers on Wednesday to understand what he called the complex “nuances” of the matter adding that the formula for a resolution was not only dependent on Armenia.
“The weight and degree of statehood is very important here. To what extent you can push forward your vision without damaging yourself. There are many important nuances here,” Pashinyan said.
The opposition forces in parliament were quick to condemn the prime minister’s remarks.
Parliament deputy speaker and a senior member of the Armenia Alliance Ishkhan Saghatelyan said that in his remarks Pashinyan wanted to place Artsakh back under Azerbaijani control.
“This means that we would finally lose Artsakh because Artsakh will be left without Armenians if we go down that path,” he told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. “This is absolutely unacceptable to us.” Saghatelyan said that regime change in Armenia is the only way to prevent such a scenario.
