Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan holds press conference in Yerevan on Jan. 23
With Azerbaijani leaders, including President Ilham Aliyev, stepping up demands for a so-called “corridor” through Armenia to Nakhichevan, official Yerevan on Tuesday rejected such a scheme saying that the concept was “inadmissible.”
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said that Armenia has not undertaken any obligation regarding a “corridor,” neither through the November 9, 2020 agreement or any other document.
When earlier this month Aliyev threatened to not open his country’s borders with Armenia unless the so-called “corridor” was in place, he cited the November 9, 2020 as paving the way for this scheme. Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the document did not envision a “corridor,” nor has there been an agreement with the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia about such a road.
During Tuesday’s press conference, Mirzoyan emphasized that the so-called “corridor logic” was inadmissible, repeating Yerevan’s readiness and interest in opening transportation links as stated in the November 9, 2020 document.
“All three demands voiced by Aliyev are a violation of the sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia,” Mirzoyan stressed, expressing readiness to find solutions. He emphasized, however, that passage through Armenia without customs controls is unacceptable to Yerevan.
He explained that the November 9, 2020 agreement did not envision the participation of third countries in the internal customs processes and added Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had pledged to ensure the safe passage of cargo and individuals through the territory of Armenia.
Mirzoyan said that Yerevan is ready to resume negotiations with Baku, and noted that in recent weeks Azerbaijan has reversed the progress made in the peace talks.
In early December, the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan issued a joint statement about an agreement on a prisoner exchange, which took place on December 8.
“Unfortunately, after this positive step of December 8 [prisoner exchange] we saw that Azerbaijan is not continuing with its constructive stance, to say the least,” Mirzoyan said.
“That was evident both within the seventh Azerbaijani proposals on the [peace] treaty and the Azerbaijani president’s latest interview. There was a significant regression and even a blow to the peace process on a number of key issues,” Mirzoyan added.