Today, journalists in Parliament addressed a question to Sona Ghazaryan, a member of the National Assembly’s 'Civil Contract' faction, asking her to comment on the latest statements by Hikmet Hajiyev, an aide to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who had declared Gandzasar to be Albanian. Journalists asked why no official position had been voiced by Armenia regarding the statement.
Ghazaryan recalled that National Assembly Speaker Ruben Rubinyan had already responded to the issue.
“I support the assertion that such statements as the ones you quoted do not contribute to strengthening peace. Peace exists, but it needs care, and such statements not only do not help that process, but are also unfounded,” the MP stated.
Asked what the Armenian side expects, Ghazaryan emphasized: “We also expect the two sides to show equal care toward peace, especially considering how much Azerbaijan’s discourse has changed in this regard.”
Sona Ghazaryan expressed hope that the Matenadaran would issue a statement on the matter.
In response to journalists’ clarifying question as to why, apart from individuals, the Armenian side does not condemn such statements at the institutional level — the National Assembly, the Security Council, and so on — the MP noted that Rubinyan had responded to the statement as Speaker of the National Assembly.
“Record this statement as the response of the National Assembly. As a citizen, I understand your concern and your feelings. I assure you, we all have these feelings, but we, as a parliament, must take note of the progress that exists in Armenia-Azerbaijan relations.
We have had a conflict, no one denies that; we have had a difficult history, but let us take note that the Republic of Armenia and Azerbaijan have reached agreement on the most important issues and enshrined them in two important documents. That is the Regulation on the Activities of the Border Delimitation Commissions, where the basis is the Alma-Ata Declaration, which, I believe, is an important achievement and is worth talking about, and the peace treaty, which has been initialed and also addresses issues of this kind.
I believe it is also important to note that Armenia and Azerbaijan have built relations in which the discussion of such issues is left to diplomats and not soldiers, and I believe this is also an important achievement,” the Civil Contract faction MP stated.
According to her, Armenia and Azerbaijan have made sufficient efforts after a difficult history to build an environment where peace exists and needs to be institutionalized, toward which Armenia is working tirelessly and expects similar conduct from Azerbaijan as well.
“We can take note of such statements, but alongside that, I suggest that we also take note of the progress and treat peace with care,” Sona Ghazaryan emphasized.
The National Assembly Speaker had stated in the parliament’s session hall that the peace we have newly achieved needs constant care.
“It is very important to develop sensitivity regarding various issues. The statements you pointed to, naturally, do not contribute to or serve a useful purpose in the context of peace, apart from the fact that they are also unfounded. But, on the other hand, it is good that we are now in a state of peace, and our disagreements or disputes concern such issues, rather than being expressed through border shootings or clashes,” Ruben Rubinyan had said.
