Armenian expert on Iran Vardan Voskanyan, who heads the Chair of Iranian Studies of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the Yerevan State University (YSU), dismissed the allegations that “there are Azerbaijani territories under Armenia’s control”.

“In fact, it cannot be the case, because when, figuratively speaking, a nomadic tribe, unknown to the history of human culture, once settled on some piece of sacred Armenian land by a decision of some collective farm head, it does not make that piece of land sanctified by the blood and sweat of our ancestors "Azerbaijani" at all,” he wrote on Telegram.

“Finally, the extreme vulnerability or even almost complete lack of strategic depth of the territory of the Republics of Armenia and Artsakh makes every piece of land in our homeland extremely important and vital to ensure our continued existence and strength,” the expert said.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Nikol Pashinyan said: “There are Armenian territories that are under the control of Azerbaijan and there are Azerbaijani territories that are under Armenia’s control. These issues should be solved through negotiations, of course, based on de-jure substantiated protocols and facts of legal significance.”