Raimundas Lopata, Chair, Group for Inter-Parliamentary Relations with the Republic of Armenia at Lithuanian Seimas, held an exclusive interview with “Lurer”. Mr. Lopata visited Armenia with the Lithuanian parliamentary delegation.
Mr. Lopata, on 16th November armed forces of Azerbaijan undertook/launched yet another military aggression against sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, attacking from the eastern border and intruding into the territory of Armenia. How would you assess such aggressive acts by Azerbaijan, and the situation in the region in general?
Raimundas Lopata. Our delegation learnt about the developments on the borders while on the way to Armenia. We came here to mark the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations. We started our visit with Tsitsernakaberd Genocide Memorial Complex - and I saw shock, pain and deep sorrow in the eyes of members of our delegation.
Going back to your question, I can say that I feel extremely disturbed by the reported Azerbaijani attacks and the use of heavy weapons along the border with Armenia on Tuesday, which came after days of increasingly growing tension.
Immediate cessation of and refraining in the future from any actions which would further widen geography of the conflict and human suffering is of critical importance at this moment. We firmly reject the use of force or the threat to use force as a means of solving international disputes.
All forces should pull back to the positions held before 12 May 2021, thus paving the way for starting the process of border delimitation through negotiations under international auspices – not by setting facts on the ground. I welcome proposals for a possible international monitoring mission along the border and encourage concrete steps in this direction.
Also, it is key for the sides to immediately engage into substantive negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs with a view to achieve a negotiated, comprehensive and sustainable settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
On 27th September 2020 Azerbaijan unleashed a large-scale war against Artsakh. Today dozens of Armenian prisoners of war and civilians are held captive in Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani authorities regularly declare that the Artsakh conflict is over. Will you comment on Azerbaijan's policy on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict?
Raimundas Lopata. Lithuania, together with the whole EU, does not consider the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict solved. That is obvious. I would very much wish to the people and countries in South Caucasus peace, prosperity and ability to take their own sovereign decisions. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict remains a major impediment in this respect. That’s why I believe it is ultimately in the best interests of both Armenia and Azerbaijan to engage, in good faith, in substantive negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs. I strongly believe that there are simply no other feasible alternatives to solve this conflict than the compromise achieved via direct talks. A very high price has been paid for this conflict already, and here I am talking of course about human lives and suffering, but also about sovereignty, about the ability of South Caucasus countries to freely develop, to freely choose their path.
Another important remark - the EU can and must play a much more active role in both supporting the efforts of the Minsk Co-Chairs, and contributing to peace-building in the South Caucasus region. Lithuania is encouraging such a role, and is actively contributing to it, as witnessed during the visit of Minister G. Landsbergis and his Austrian, Romanian counterparts to the region on behalf of the EU High Representative J. Borrell. I would add one more element: developments in the South Caucasus region reflect trends, which have a global significance. Stronger engagement by the US is of critical importance.
Regarding the issue of POWs, already in February this year, Lithuanian Seimas Group for Inter-Parliamentary Relations with Armenia called on Azerbaijan to accelerate the exchange of prisoners of war and hostages, to immediately end criminal proceedings against them and ensure their transfer to Armenia. An unconditional and immediate return of all prisoners (as well as sharing of any existing mine maps) can be a very important step towards the start of restoring trust. In our statement, we also called on the institutions of the European Union to raise this humanitarian issue consistently in the context of the current and future relations with Azerbaijan.
What are the perspectives of the enhancement of the Armenian-Lithuania bilateral and multilateral partnership, including in the framework of the cooperation with the EU.
Raimundas Lopata. Marking the 30th anniversary since the mutual recognition (Lithuania was the first country in the world to recognize the independence of Armenia) and the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, I can say with high degree of confidence that over the last years, bilateral partnership between Lithuania and Armenia has been deepening and expanding at a very fast pace, especially following the Velvet Revolution. We have rediscovered Armenia. And I believe it was not just us.
We have been intensively sharing Lithuania’s own successes and lessons in various fields, intensifying political dialogue, and increasing development cooperation assistance. I can only reaffirm Lithuania’s resolute willingness to continue providing political and practical support for democratic reform process in Armenia.
Although global pandemics paralyzed the world and hindered some cooperation formats, we have also managed to exploit it for the benefit of our bilateral relations. In 2020, Lithuania supported Armenia with equipment (such as PPEs, PCR tests, ICU equipment), conducted a medical mission to Armenia, supported Armenia with 27 500 doses of EU-made “AstraZeneca” vaccines and 50 000 doses of “Spikevax” vaccine manufactured by Moderna – and this fruitful cooperation evolves and continues.
I am particularly pleased to observe that solidarity works both ways. As we say – a friend in need is a friend indeed. The Armenian Government has demonstrated solidarity with our country by delegating an interpreter of Kurmanji language to support Lithuanian institutions when we most needed such practical support in light of orchestrated migration crisis on Belarusian-Lithuanian border.
Moving towards the question on the EU, Lithuania is a staunch supporter of an even more active EU role in the region. The more engagement of Europe you will have, the stronger support you will be able to receive to strengthen Armenia’s democracy, sovereignty, prosperity, and maybe even security. And here I am not just talking about the financial support - I do believe Armenia would only benefit from a greater number of EU twinning, TAIEX projects, EU advisors in various fields and from many other instruments at the EU disposal. That is important now more than ever, given current challenges in front of us, but also with new opportunities having been opened up by the implementation of CEPA agreement between the EU and Armenia, as well as by Armenia’s systemic reform agenda.
And last but not least. I feel the current mood in Armenia. I understand your pain, anxiety caused by the challenges Armenia is currently facing. Yet I would wish the people of Armenia not to underestimate their achievements, to maintain their confidence and faith. Challenges are there to be overcome. The fact that Armenia has been invited by President Joe Biden to take part at the Summit for Democracy is a proof of very important progress in strengthening democracy, achieved by Armenia. This is a very important acknowledgement and a great opportunity, and I am confident that Armenia will make the best use of it.
