Category: 2021

Artsakh’s political elite “has run out of patience”, human rights activist and former Artsakh Ombudsman Ruben Melikyan claimed on Sunday, referring to the recent statements of the country’s leaders.

His comments came after the Artsakh president and human rights ombudsman harshly reacted to the statements of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on the Artsakh issue, calling them “extremely dangerous” for the vital rights of the Artsakh Armenians.

In a public post on Facebook, Melikyan admitted that not all developments in Artsakh were clear to him.

“Nevertheless, I reserve the right to make a few points:

1) The Artsakh elite has completely run out of patience, with an exception of “23.65%”.

2) The confrontation is real, not "staged".

3) The vast majority of Artsakh Armenians (99% and more) are well aware that the capitulator has turned into an enemy agent and henchman,” he said, welcoming the “awakening process” in the country.

The Armenian authorities are attempting to create a political crisis in Artsakh using the "trap" they have set, according to MP Tigran Abrahamyan from the opposition With Honor faction.

In a Facebook post on Monday, the lawmaker stressed the need for all major forces in Artsakh to get back to the post-war period of political consultations to establish political stability in the country.

“Immediately after the war there was a preliminary consensus between the ruling force and the parliamentary opposition that the president and the ruling party acting within the framework of the Constitution and the laws of Artsakh should cede the key positions and spheres to several political forces, which in their turn would form a stable majority by coalition or other principle and lead the country not only out of the domestic political crisis but also out of the difficult situation created by the war.

“This scenario did not succeed, because the Armenian authorities intervened and created a "balance" in Artsakh, which could change at any moment according to their preferences.

“Using the "trap" they have set, the Armenian authorities are now trying to create an internal political crisis in Artsakh, which, thanks to the prudence and efforts of the parliamentary opposition, is not allowed at this stage.

“Pashinyan's government aims to provoke instability and crisis in Artsakh in order to deprive Artsakh of its entity. That is why these behind-the-scenes actions are accompanied by aggressive conduct of Pashinyan and his political/propaganda team, whose main goal is to show that Artsakh cannot remain Armenian and the struggle is senseless and to move the process to the field of Turkish-Azerbaijani logic,” Abrahamyan said.

The Armenian authorities have taken no measures to enhance the army's combat efficiency this year, second Armenian President and opposition Hayastan bloc leader Robert Kocharyan told a year-end news conference on Monday.

He recalled that the Armenian military suffered dozens of casualties in 2021.

"During this year, we have had 36 casualties. This figure may vary depending on sources. We have 32 wounded and 30 new prisoners of war. Having more than 30 POWs as a result of the fighting for 2 to 3 positions speaks to the most serious problems in the military. It just doesn't happen that way," the ex-president said.

Kocharyan believes the Armenia troops might have been under the impression of Nikol Pashinyan’s statement.

"Let me remind you that he [Pashinyan} said that he does not intend to start a war because of a mountain. Your country is made up of mountains. It is the same as if the Arabs would say, 'We will not fight for a desert”. Such a statement is a call to Azerbaijan to some extent, because it is clearly and directly stated that we will not fight for uninhabited mountains. If the first person of the state thinks so, why do we expect a major or a contract soldier of our country's armed forces to think otherwise? This is simply the best way to reduce the combat efficiency of the army," Kocharyan underlined.

In the former president’s words, no steps have been taken during 2021 to restore armaments lost during the war.

"In fact, nothing or almost nothing has been done. A complete list of the war victims has not yet been published, which is an utter disgrace. We should have had memorial books with the names of the fallen soldiers and their short biographies. This is an obligation the state has failed to fulfil," he noted.

Touching upon the security of the country, Robert Kocharyan cited the results of the polls, according to which 70-80% of the people are deeply concerned about the security issues.

"The country cannot develop normally if 80% of the population think they live in an unsafe country. This is not normal and the current government is directly responsible for it. We are entering the next year with all these problems and a worsened situation," Kocharyan noted.

Armenia's ex-president Robert Kocharyan spoke about the difference between the so-called "Meghri corridor" connecting Azerbaijan to Nakhijevan across the southern Armenian region of Syunik which had beeen discussed during his tenure as president from the current 'Zangezur corridor' articulated by Azerbaijanis. Kocharyan's remarks came at a press conference on Monday. 

In his words, the first difference was that there was no Turkey in those discussions. Secondly, per Kocharyan, the discussions at Key West were around connecting Karabakh to Armenia though a corridor that would have the same status as Nagorno Karabakh itself. 

"My formulations have considered security provisions that the corridor should be at list 42 km wide to be secure and prevent the adversary's weapons and equipment. You may compare that option with current uncertainty around Karabakh both in terms of status and security. The difference was in that," Kocharyan stressed. 

Asked why the deal at Key West was not implemented, Kocharyan said: "Azerbaijani president refused to sign the agreement at the last moment in Key West. I have reflected on that in detail in my book. He said he can't even persuade his family members and confessed that he had overestimated his ability to influence the public opinion," added Kocharyan. 

"The option discussed in Key West regarding the Meghri corridor was about only granting a right to use the territory and that was a roadway as we didn't discuss railway communication at the time," said Kocharyan. 

The National Assembly of the Artsakh Republic has issued a statement in connection with remarks made Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan  during a recent interview. 

According to the text, throughout the chronicle of the Karabakh conflict statements distorting and falsifying the essence of the problem have regularly been circulated, which complicate and entangle the process of comprehensive and final settlement of the conflict. "We consider inadmissible any statement by different political forces and figures that questions or diminishes the subjectivity of Artsakh and its Armenian future. It is confusing that the last such statement was made by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia while answering the questions of the representatives of media and non-governmental-organizations, on December 24," the statement said. 

The rest of the statement reads as follows: 

"The fate of Artsakh has never been and it will not be the monopoly of any political force. We express our disagreement and frustration on a number of harmful, distorted formulations and ideas voiced during the interview. 

The fact that against the background of Karabakh movement, the results of the 1988 national liberation struggle, formulations are heard, which question the existence of the Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) Republic, proclaimed on September 2, 1991, which is fully acting in line with the norms of international law and its ongoing struggle for international recognition, is a matter of concern.

The negotiation process of previous years, the legal and political framework of the Armenian parties, in the context of protecting our national interests, did not contradict the positions presented by international structures and mediators.

The fact that the status of Nagorno Karabakh has never been ignored in the proposals previously submitted by the mediators, is confirmed in the clarifications given by the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs.

The working options discussed in the negotiation process of different years, speculations about a possible change in the negotiating framework are imaginary and false tricks to obscure the public consciousness, to distort the realities.

We consider inadmissible the statements questioning the Armenian origin of Artsakh and emphasizing the importance of the presence of possible foreign elements. Such statements are reprehensible and worthy condemnation in the memory of the thousands of Armenians who sacrificed their lives for the freedom and independence of Artsakh.

Bowing down to the memory of all those perished in the Artsakh struggle for survival, at the same time, we express our gratitude to all Armenians, particularly to our compatriots in Armenia, for standing by Artsakh, sharing its sufferings and deprivations.

For many years, the fraternal relations between the two Armenian republics have been based on the decision adopted by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia on July 8, 1992, which clearly defined the attitude of the Republic of Armenia, a full member of the international community, towards the Artsakh Republic, which is striving for international recognition. With this decision, the Republic of Armenia undertakes to "consistently support the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and the protection of the rights of its population". It is also defined to «consider any international or domestic document, where the Nagorno Karabakh Republic is mentioned as part of Azerbaijan, unacceptable for the Republic of Armenia». This resolution is still relevant today.

The Republic of Artsakh National Assembly, reaffirming the determination of the people and authorities of Artsakh on the sovereignty and independence of the Artsakh Republic, declares unacceptable expressing a position without taking into account the point of view of the Artsakh authorities, as only the legitimate authorities formed by the citizens of the Artsakh Republic through elections have the right to make decisions on the future of Artsakh."