Opposition MP Tigran Abrahamyan has reacted to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s latest warnings of a high risk of an escalation both along Armenia's border with Azerbaijan and in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).
"There is a very high probability of an escalation both along Armenia's border [with Azerbaijan] and in Nagorno-Karabakh," he told a press conference in Yerevan, pointing to Azerbaijan's increasingly aggressive rhetoric and “some other information” which he did not disclose.
Also, the premier said that Armenia recently received Baku’s response to its proposals for a peace treaty submitted in mid-February and noted some progress in the peace process.
However, he said “fundamental problems” remain unresolved because “Azerbaijan is trying to put forward territorial claims against Armenia, which is a red line to the country.”
“The most remarkable part of Pashinyan's press conference concerns the stalemate in negotiations,” Abrahamyan wrote on Facebook on Wednesday.
“Azerbaijan has factually annulled the Prague agreements which were already detrimental to Armenia’s interests, putting forward new ambitious proposals. They imply holding Artsakh-Azerbaijan talks exclusively on integration,” the MP stressed.
He also called attention to Azerbaijan’s rejection of any international guarantees in Artsakh and mediated talks with Artsakh’s authorities.
“Azerbaijan actively promotes the idea of "Western Azerbaijan", trying to incorporate it into the Armenia-Azerbaijan treaty, which provides an opportunity to legitimize its attack on Armenia,” the deputy said.
“When Pashinyan says that Azerbaijan’s new proposals are crossing the red line, he is not concerned about the interests of Armenia or Artsakh, but seeks to save his own skin.
“The situation has reached a point where it constitutes a political suicide even for Pashinyan, and he has started to worry about his security and future, because the current situation will explode one day, taking down a lot of people,” he added.