ArmInfo.Armenia has to learn a bitter lesson, draw conclusions and be capable of transforming this bitter experience into success, Tigran Khzmalyan, Chairman of the European Party of Armenia (EPA), said in an interview with ArmInfo.
"Our party warned about it before the war. We warned about the threats to our statehood and to Artsakh, with no one listening to us. So listen to our proposals now, and, may be, we will save what we can save now. All that is going on in Artsakh now was predictable years ago. And if anyone is shocked at the Azerbaijani provocations and aggression as if it were something new, I am only regretful about that," Mr Khazmalyan said. The shock some part of Armenia's society got at the Azerbaijani and Russian actions against the Artsakh Armenians is evidence that Armenia's civil society and political parties have never come to realize what has happened to Armenia and Artsakh over the last 25 years. Nor any conclusions were drawn even after the 44-day Azerbaijani aggression, which can only cause regret about the Armenians.
As regards the situation round the village of Parukh in Artsakh, Mr Khzmalyan describes it as a logical follow-up to the actions against Armenia and Artsakh over the last decades as a result of Russia's agreements with Azerbaijan and Turkey. However, they will not be able to implement their agreements, even with Armenia being weak and isolated now. "I am sure that, besides our enemies' plans, the civilized world has its own ideas and programmes, which concern Armenia as well. And if we do not make further fatal mistakes, we will retain Armenia's sovereignty. Moreover, we could well save Artsakh," Mr Khzmalyan said.
Commenting on Yerevan's steps in the context of the present situation in Artsakh, the politician said they are in line with what the EPA has been consistently stating over the last few years. In this context, Mr Khzmalyan singled out the applications to the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs being prepared now, which the mediators had expected both before and after the 44-day war.
"I remember well that only recently Stepanakert refused to meet even with the U.S. and French co-chairs. And now they have suddenly remembered that such meetings and discussions are an urgent need. But the point is that they re doing so after committing numerous fatal mistakes and at a great cost. Moreover, the example of the village of Parukh shows us that we are still paying. Yerevan has realized that it is time to correct the mistakes, and the visits to and meetings in Brussels, Paris and Washington are evidence thereof. So let us wait for the results," Mr Khazmalyan said.