"I HAVE GIVEN 21 YEARS FOR ARTSAKH," SAYS SARGSYAN

Tert
Sept 21 2009
Armenia

We will not engage in any one-sided compromises. That is excluded,"
announced President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan in an interview with
Russian paper Mosovski Komsomolets ().

"We are not dividing ourselves in half, though in Russia, in the West
and in Baku there is the impression that we are ready to concede
and forgive to no end. But I have given 21 years [of my life] to
Artsakh [Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh] and I won’t allow us to lose
it. Karabakh has been and will remain independent. Those ‘captured
areas,’ which Azerbaijan wants from us, are present border lands,
our secure corridor. We won’t give those away. Let them call us an
aggressor; I’m not offended. If they were able to take these lands by
force, then believe me, they would’ve done that by now. The possibility
doesn’t exist. Consequently, they have to listen to our opinions. And,
it’s possible, at that time, sooner or later, comprises can be made.

"We are prepared to go there on three conditions: Karabakh will never
be a part of Azerbaijan, Karabakh’s independence will be recognized
on a political level, and finally, independent Karabakh must have
safe communication by land with Yerevan. After these three conditions
have been met, it’s possible that we will be ready for a dialogue,"
announced the Armenian president.