Armenia is ready to begin consultations with the Azerbaijani side as soon as possible regarding the venue and date for the final signing of the peace treaty, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said on Monday.
Speaking to reporters in parliament, the FM once again said that Armenia doesn’t accept Azerbaijan’s precondition for the signing.
“We have stated that we are ready to start as soon as possible. At this very moment, I am ready to begin consultations with the Azerbaijani side regarding where and when the signing of the agreement will take place. Of course, we are also aware of the Azerbaijani side’s comments and conditions on this matter. We do not accept that condition. They have communicated this both publicly and during meetings. We do not consider it a topic for discussion and we do not accept that condition. I hope that in the near future, the processes will evolve in a way that we will take that step towards institutionalizing peace — the signing and later ratification,” Mirzoyan said.
He emphasized that there are many components, issues, and areas of work, starting from border demarcation to humanitarian issues and prisoners. There is a lot of work to be done, even aside from the actual signing.
According to FM Mirzoyan, the initialing of the peace agreement, with the circumstances and significance it had, was welcomed by almost all countries and international organizations. The statements made by the leaders of countries after the signing and up to the present continuously reaffirm that peace has been established. “The leaders of countries constantly reaffirm their commitment to maintain and develop peace. In this regard, the important milestone we sought — the establishment of peace through a signature — occurred with the initialing. But also with everything else I described. Perhaps it’s a bit of an exaggeration, but there is an opinion that, against this backdrop and under these conditions, that signing is perhaps more of a technical continuation of the process and, of course, its institutionalization,” he added.
Azerbaijan’s precondition for the final signing of the peace treaty is constitutional changes in Armenia. The Armenian side has repeatedly emphasized that such an issue, as part of a mutually agreed agenda, does not exist in the discussions. Both the question of amending the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and the issue of adopting a new Constitution are exclusively matters of domestic politics and decisions to be made by the people of Armenia. The Armenian government has indicated the need for a constitutional referendum but has emphasized that it has nothing to do with the peace process with Azerbaijan.
