The situation around Armenia is quite tense. Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan informed the senior officers and the staff of the Ministry of Defense, reminding that since May 12 the units of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan have crossed the border of the Republic of Armenia illegally.
“During this period, there have been many criticisms as to why the Armenian Armed Forces do not take measures to overcome this situation. I want to state that our position from the beginning was the following: as long as there is an opportunity to resolve the situation through diplomacy and politics, we will go that way. And as long as we see such an opportunity, we must lead the process that way,” says Nikol Pashinyan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia.
Azerbaijan continues its aggressive policy, it tries to create the impression that it has created an agenda around Armenia and in the region, which it imposes, but the reality is different, Armenia has its own agenda, Armenia’s Prime Minister stated, reaffirming that Armenia continues to be within the framework of its international obligations.
“Opening of regional communications is one of the priorities of the Government of the Republic of Armenia. And what is Azerbaijan doing? It tries to add components to this topic, which by their content are unacceptable for the Republic of Armenia. I mean, in particular, the rumors about the corridor. Everyone should know that there has never been an agreement on a corridor through Armenia. And the Republic of Armenia has not undertaken any obligation on that topic, either orally or in written, but we have clearly expressed our positions in all cases when such sentences have been voiced. And the agreements we have are, in fact, expressed in the statements of November 9 and January 11,” Pashinyan says.
The Prime Minister denied the speculations of the Armenian political sector that there is a secret agreement with Azerbaijan. According to him, apart from the announcements of November 9 and January 11, there is no other agreement.
“It is written in that statement that the Republic of Armenia should be able to transit goods through the territory of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan should be able to transit goods through Armenia. I would like to draw your attention to the text of the January 11 statement. It is very clearly written that agreements on customs, border, sanitary and phytosanitary control should be discussed and reached. In other words, there is a clear record that, as is logically accepted, in the case of using the territory of Armenia as a transit route, as in all other cases, that crossing should take place according to those rules, such as today crossing for citizens of Georgia or Islamic Republic of Iran,” Nikol Pashinyan says.
According to Pashinyan, Azerbaijan is aborting the process of unblocking the region, as the enemy’s policy has been aimed at blockading Armenia for almost 30 years.
“The opening of communications is really our agenda, not Azerbaijan's. Because we consider that by opening the communications, we overcome the policy of Azerbaijan to blockade the Republic of Armenia. And that is why Azerbaijan uses the corridor logic, knowing that it is unacceptable for us. It wants the events to develop in such a way that there is no opening of communications,” Nikol Pashinyan says.
The issue of border demarcation and delimitation is on Armenia's agenda, but not in the presence of Azerbaijani troops in Armenia. According to Pashinyan, Armenia's positions are in line with the positions of the international community.
“It is very important to note that the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, in particular by the April 13 statement stated the need for a settlement based on the principles and elements known to the parties. In other words, why am I saying this in order to clearly state that the international community itself recognizes the need for a solution to the conflict, and consequently registers the existence of the conflict?” Nikol Pashinyan says.
The Prime Minister highlighted the process of reform of the Armenian Armed Forces, emphasizing that the country's military-political leadership has a great responsibility.
“We must bear that responsibility. The fact is that destiny has placed itself on us to set this agenda, we must overcome these challenges with honor,” Nikol Pashinyan says.
Armenia is for peace, Nikol Pashinyan assured, but regretfully stated that peace does not depend only on us.
