Category: 2021

Today there is a lot of commotion in Armenia with regard to the special envoy who will support Armenia’s position in the negotiations with Turkey. Nevertheless, if the Prime Minister of Armenia is Nikol Pashinyan, it doesn’t matter who will participate in the negotiations and who will represent our country at all. This is what Spokesperson of the Republican Party of Armenia, former Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Eduard Sharmazanov told reporters.

According to the member of the political opposition, in any case, the envoy needs to lead and advance Pashinyan’s policy.

“In the document, which is currently the foundation for the negotiations, the words “Armenian Genocide” will be brought into compliance with the text of the position that the President of Turkey had previously expressed. It’s unequivocally clear what this document will contain. The document will also state the requirements for the establishment of diplomatic relations, as well as ambiguous statements on the Armenian Genocide. “They killed both the Armenians and the Turks. This is our shared pain” – this is what Erdogan says. They will say something in general and then say “See? Erdogan says this is our shared pain”. Then, an average Turkish official will probably visit Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex and lay flowers, after which these authorities will go and lay flowers at the tomb of Kemal Ataturk, and the ‘brotherhood’ will begin,” Sharmazanov said.

Sharmazanov emphasized that with this policy, the incumbent authorities of Armenia are destroying the whole struggle for the Armenian Cause, creating a barrier between the Armenian Diaspora and its historic homeland.

Turkey and Azerbaijan are trying to advance the idea of a corridor, but the regional and non-regional players have other notions that are different from the notions of Ankara and Baku. This is what political analyst Argishti Kiviryan told reporters today and recalled that the statement signed on November 9, 2020 concerns the road with a special status that will be under the control of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, not what Baku says or wants.

Even if Armenia is imposed to implement this provision of the statement, according to Kiviryan, it won’t mean that it is within the logic of the desires of Ankara and Baku.

“For instance, Iran doesn’t accept this. The same thing that disturbed Turkey and Azerbaijan from seizing Stepanakert will also disturb them now. Proceeding from the counterbalances and the established rules of the game, Baku still isn’t trying to solve the problem militarily since this will mean declaring a war against Moscow,” Kiviryan emphasized, adding that Armenia is located in a region in which the enemy will always exert pressure and that the only way is to create a combat-ready army.

According to Kiviryan, the November 9 statement also stated the need for exchange of captives, and Moscow seeks to meet this objective step-by-step. “The mistake of the Armenian authorities was that they shouldn’t have implemented the other provisions so long as Baku hadn’t returned all the captives. What Armenia has now is a result of the absence of skillful diplomacy,” he concluded.

Armenia returned, without preconditions, the Azerbaijani servicemen who trespassed the border and were captured on Dec. 18. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan declared during today’s online press conference, touching upon the transfer of the captured Azerbaijani servicemen to the Azerbaijani side through the mediation of the Russian Federation on Dec. 20.

“We returned them without preconditions and without anything in return because we don’t want to create the impression that we are busy bargaining people. Based on our stance, we have shown that we are fully committed to international norms,” Pashinyan said.

If safety is not ensured for cargo transportation, there won’t be cargo transportation, and if Armenian cargo can’t pass through the territory of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani cargo also can’t pass through the territory of Armenia. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan said during his online press conference today.

“Obviously, when we discuss these issues, we take into consideration the fact that there needs to be cargo transportation. Imagine how illogical it would be, if Armenia suddenly opened a route and it wasn’t used,” he said, adding that there are talks about construction of the Azerbaijan-Nakhchivan railway costing approximately $200,000,000, which is very close.

Asked if it is likely that the negotiations will lead to the signing of a peace treaty, Pashinyan said the following: “Of course, Armenia is interested in the signing of a peace treaty and the start of talks over the signing of that treaty. If Armenia has declared that it wants to open an era of peace, it would be illogical, if Armenia said it doesn’t want to hear anything about a peace treaty. If we succeed in creating a model of peace that will be favorable for both sides, perhaps there will be an opportunity to understand each other’s viewpoints and form a new scheme,” he said.

According to Pashinyan, in Sochi and Brussels, there were such preconditions, but the events that took place after the meeting in Sochi put the talks in jeopardy. “Fortunately, there were no such events after the meeting in Brussels, and I hope we can move forward. I returned from the meeting in Sochi with a feeling of satisfaction, and I talked about that during a briefing. However, there were statements that made me think that something was misunderstood. In Brussels, there was tension in the beginning of the meeting, but during the meeting, we tried to understand each other’s viewpoints when we saw that it was entering a deadlock. There were practical issues, and I saw opportunities for solutions,” he emphasized.

I don’t agree with this viewpoint because we haven’t discussed, we aren’t discussing and we won’t discuss any issue within the logic of corridor. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan said during his online press conference today, touching upon the viewpoint of opposition forces according to which Armenia, by going to negotiations with Turkey, has already accepted the preconditions of the Turkish side, one of which is the provision of the so-called ‘Zangezur corridor’.

“It’s important for Armenia to create transit routes and build an agenda. If, in the relations with Turkey, it becomes clear that the potential communications may expand across the region, and this is one of the major issues on our agenda, that is, there will be opening of the Armenian-Turkish border and railway. We’re talking about the reopening of air communication, which we welcome, and we hope the reciprocal flights will resume. Our expectation is the normalization of relations, but we need to understand that we’re dealing with a very difficult issue, and people in Armenia are very emotional about this,” Pashinyan said.

When will the first meeting of the special envoys of Armenia and Turkey take place?

“I hope the meeting is designated as soon as possible. This will be a very long process. If we can achieve concrete results after four or five meetings, it will be better, but it would be exaggerated to expect that this will happen,” Pashinyan stated.

Is it possible for the Armenian side to renounce the demand for recognition of the Armenian Genocide after the negotiations?

Pashinyan touched upon this question raised by several media outlets and noted the following: “All governments of Armenia have said they are ready to normalize relations with Turkey without preconditions, which means that recognition of the Armenian Genocide has never been a precondition for the normalization of relations with Turkey and the opening of borders. The government has clearly stated its approach to international recognition of the Armenian Genocide in its program.”

Does Ruben Rubinyan, who has been appointed Armenia’s special envoy for the upcoming Armenian-Turkish negotiations, have enough capabilities? Isn’t there a fear that the Armenian side will fail due to the envoy’s lack of experience?

In response, Pashinyan said it’s very important for the Armenian side’s envoy is a member of the ruling political team during the negotiations and added that Rubinyan’s education, political career and rather vast experience are sufficient.

Will there be a meeting with Erdogan?

According to the Prime Minister, there is no such idea or agreement.

“However, if Mr. Rubinyan’s negotiations with his Turkish counterpart proceed successfully and the process leads up to that point, there will obviously be meetings at a high level and at a higher level. If progress is made, of course, there will be a meeting,” Pashinyan declared.

I won’t repeat the mistake that I made in the past. I refuse to discuss any issue related to the armed forces publicly. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan said during his online press conference today, touching upon the question about the arms and military equipment that Armenia has procured.

Asked if the radical reforms in the self-defense system are being considered, the Prime Minister said the following: “Again, I won’t discuss the subtleties and specific issues related to the army, and I advise everyone to not discuss such issues publicly. However, I will say that all of our thoughts about the army are expressed in the government’s action plan.”

As for the reason why the defeated high-ranking officers haven’t been relieved of their posts and why the ones who acted in the best way during the war aren’t appointed to positions, Pashinyan said the following: “As far as the officers are concerned, this is a very important issue. However, we need to be very careful to not mix things up. During the war, I was told that a certain commander had left a military post and escaped, and then, after a long investigation, it turned out that it was totally the opposite. There was also the opposite case when a certain commander was glorified, but the investigation showed that he shouldn’t have been glorified. Those who gave wrong reports have been punished, are being punished and will be punished. This is a major issue on the agenda, but I wouldn’t like to go into detail.”

The most important topic and the one that is somewhat complicated is for the government to be able to present all the layers of the process of negotiations over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict when talking to the public — the issue on the rights of Azerbaijanis who lived in Nagorno-Karabakh has never been challenged during the whole course of negotiations. This is what Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan stated during his online press conference today.

“The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast has never been viewed as merely and only an Armenian entity during the process of negotiations because during the negotiations it was recorded that Azerbaijanis also lived in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast and the protection of their rights was part of the negotiations. I have stated that when there were talks about a referendum for adjustment of the status of Nagorno-Karabakh, there were also talks about the whole population of Nagorno-Karabakh. This means not only the Armenian population, but also the Azerbaijani population,” he said.

Pashinyan declared that today people are making statements that have nothing to do with the content of the negotiations as of 2018. “When I say that a catastrophe took place in the process of negotiations in 2016, this is the context that I’m referring to. The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast has always been considered an Armenian and Azerbaijani entity, at least with respect to the population,” he said.

Asked what catastrophe took place in 2016, Pashinyan said the following: “A very important thing took place — in 2016, the Co-Chairs [of the OSCE Minsk Group] presented three packages of proposals in which, since 2011, there hadn’t been a phrase about Nagorno-Karabakh obtaining an interim status. Throughout the process of negotiations, the Armenian side’s position has been to do everything possible to make sure the conflict is ultimately resolved in the domain of the Minsk Group. In 2016, in essence, the parameters of the solution to the issue were moved to the UN Security Council.

The issue that will be solved is the issue on which part of the country Nagorno-Karabakh will be in until the final status of Nagorno-Karabakh is determined, even with an interim status. When this is in the United Nations Security Council, this is very predictable because back in 1993, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution stating that (a) “Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan” and (b) it recognizes the territorial integrity and inviolability of the borders of Azerbaijan. This is the catastrophe that took place in 2016. This is important in that if that status of Nagorno-Karabakh is recorded, it means that the adjustment of the final status will be in accordance with the Constitution of Azerbaijan,” the Prime Minister said, adding that, in essence, the issue on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh was returned to the domain of the UN Security Council in 2016.

Touching upon the allegations against him about giving lands, Pashinyan said they are groundless allegations.

I’m listening to the greatest scoundrel in the history of the Armenian people as he makes another attempt to remove from him the stigma of traitor, assassin and a person who forgot about Artsakh. This is what Vice-President of the Republican Party of Armenia Armen Ashotyan wrote on his Facebook page.

“Blatant lies, obvious illiteracy, ridiculous falsehood and new treason; the real catastrophe with regard to the Artsakh issue took place in 2018 when a nincompoop like you came to power in Armenia. I will never get tired of exposing your lies, forgeries and show that you betrayed Artsakh. Thus, you will receive a new dose of reality, truth and facts again on Monday,” he wrote.