The peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will become realistic if the two countries clearly, without ambiguities and pitfalls, recognize each other’s territorial integrity and undertake not to submit territorial claims to each other today and ever, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at the National Assembly today.
“In fact, we agreed on this with the President of Azerbaijan on October 6, 2022 in Prague and on October 31 in Sochi, which was recorded in relevant public statements. Nevertheless, there are officials statements coming from both Yerevan and Baku, accusing the other party of not keeping the agreements,” he said.
The Prime Minister reaffirmed that the Republic of Armenia fully recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, and expects that Azerbaijan will do the same by recognizing the entire territory of the Armenian SSR as the Republic of Armenia.
“I should also say that Azerbaijan’s claims that during the peace treaty negotiations Armenia refused or refuses to fully recognize Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity are untrue, and we can prove it. We ourselves proposed that the maps of the Armenian and Azerbaijani SSRs, approved by the USSR, be attached to the treaty as a basis for the territorial integrity of the two countries,” PM Pashinyan said.
“But this is where we come to the biggest and most complex problem – Nagorno Karabakh. And there is a subtlety which, in fact, has been very urgent during the last 16 years, but we have never addressed it. And the problem is that we usually reflect and have reflected on the future of Nagorno Karabakh, but it was and is important to also address the issue of the situation in Nagorno Karabakh at any time during the existence of the conflict,” Nikol Pashinyan said.
“In fact, in the last five years, I have tried to do this several times, but unfortunately, every time the topic turns into an opposition-government debate, which is also normal. But in reality, there is a practical problem – the need to objectively find the answer to the question, and I will now try to do it in such a way that what was said does not look like an accusation directed at anyone, so that we focus on the content of the question and not on the form,” he said.
“I consider peace to be my political commitment, especially now, especially after the reconfirmation of the people’s vote of confidence in the 2021 parliamentary elections. And in this context, of course, it is extremely important that an international mechanism of negotiations and dialogue be formed between Baku and Stepanakert, and that the mechanism ensures the realization of the agenda of ensuring the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh,” he said.
In the context of the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty, he attached importance to an international mechanisms guaranteeing the implementation of a possible peace agreement. “Otherwise, a war may break out or a new escalation may occur the day after the agreement is signed. It is also important to have mechanisms for resolving disputes between the parties, so that if the parties are unable to resolve the issues related to the interpretation of the text of the contract through direct negotiations, there should be a court that will do so and whose decision will be binding for the parties.”
“Of course, the opening of economic and transport communications is also extremely important for peace. But I have touched on this issue many times, noting that the roads defined by point 9 of the tripartite statement of November 9, 2020 should be reopened based on the sovereignty and jurisdiction of the parties. Of course, the practical side of applying jurisdiction should and can meet modern technological requirements, but the important thing here is not so much the technical details as the legal content,” he stated.
