Thursday, March 2, 2023
German Leader Backs Karabakh’s Right To Self-Determination
• Astghik Bedevian
Germany - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz meets with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinian, Berlin, March 2, 2023.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday advocated a peaceful resolution of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict that would respect Nagorno-Karabakh residents’
right to self-determination.
“We are concerned about instability on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and the
worsening humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh,” Scholz said after talks
with Armenia’s visiting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian. “The status quo cannot
continue and there needs to be a long-term solution to the benefit of people.”
“There needs to be a peaceful settlement in terms of the territorial integrity
of Armenia and Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh citizens’ right to
self-determination. These principles are equally applicable,” he told a joint
news conference.
Peace plans jointly drafted by the United States, Russia and France prior to the
2020 Armenian-Azerbaijani war upheld the Karabakh Armenians’ right to
self-determination, which would be exercised through a referendum. Successive
Armenian governments for decades championed that principle.
Over the past year, Pashinian and other senior Armenian officials have made no
references to it in their public statements. They have spoken instead of the
need to ensure “the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh.”
Pashinian stated in January that the international community has always regarded
Karabakh as an integral part of Azerbaijan. The claim was denounced by the
Armenian opposition and Karabakh’s leadership. The latter urged Yerevan to
continue to champion “the Artsakh people’s right to self-determination” in the
international arena.
Scholz also voiced support or European Union chief Charles Michel’s ongoing
efforts to facilitate an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace deal. He noted in that
regard that German observers account for a large part of a monitoring mission
launched by the EU along Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan last month.
Russia has denounced the mission requested by Armenia, saying that it is part of
the West’s efforts to squeeze Moscow out of the South Caucasus. Yerevan has
dismissed the strong criticism voiced by its traditional ally.
Speaking at the press conference in Berlin, Pashinian revealed that Armenia and
the EU are planning to sign a “document regulating the monitoring mission.” He
did not go into details.
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan visited the German capital last month.
During that trip, his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock added her voice to
calls for an immediate end to Azerbaijan’s blockade of Karabakh’s land link with
Armenia. Baerbock pointed to “disastrous” humanitarian consequences of the
blockade.
Armenia Backs India’s Bid For Permanent UN Security Council Seat
India - A panel discussion held as part of the the Raisina Dialogue, an
international conference in New Delhi, March 2, 2023.
A senior Armenian official voiced support on Thursday for India’s efforts to
become a permanent member of the UN Security Council, underscoring deepening
ties between the two countries.
“Armenia appreciates India's balanced and stabilizing stance in these times of
global upheaval,” deputy parliament speaker Hakob Arshakian said during a panel
discussion on Indian-Armenian relations held as part of an international
security conference in New Delhi.
Arshakian described India as a “major pillar of regional and international
stability.” The world’s largest democracy is right to aspire to a larger role in
global affairs, he said.
India’s arch-foe Pakistan strongly supported Azerbaijan during the 2020
Armenian-Azerbaijani war over Nagorno-Karabakh. It has for decades refused to
establish diplomatic ties with Yerevan.
By contrast, India has backed Karabakh peace efforts spearheaded by the United
States, Russia and France. Its relationship with Armenia has become even more
cordial since the 2020 war. The Indian and Armenian foreign ministers met
regularly in 2021 and 2022.
USA - Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan meets his Indian counterpart
Subrahmanyam Jaishankar at UN headquarters in New York, December 14, 2022.
New Delhi has effectively sided Armenia with in its ongoing border disputes with
Azerbaijan. It has also expressed serious concern over the Azerbaijani blockade
of the Lachin corridor.
In September, the Armenian military reportedly signed contracts for the purchase
of $245 million worth of Indian multiple-launch rocket systems, anti-tank
rockets and ammunition. Defense Minister Suren Papikian explored the possibility
of more such deals during a subsequent visit to India.
Arshakian praised the Indian government’s position on the Armenian-Azerbaijani
government.
“The last three years have been marked by a tremendous development trend in our
relations,” he said.
The official, who is a senior member of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s party,
also hailed growing commercial ties between the two countries. Indian-Armenian
trade rose from $216 million in 2021 to over $315 million in January-November
2022, he said.
New Rights Defender Still Not Named
• Gayane Saribekian
Armenia - Kristine Grigorian addresses the National Assembly shorly before being
elected Armenia's human rights defender, Yerevan, January 24, 2022.
More than one month after the unexpected resignation of Armenia’s state
ombudswoman, Kristine Grigorian, the ruling Civil Contract party has still not
nominated a new human rights defender.
Grigorian stepped down on January 23 after less than a year in office. She said
she is planning to move on to another job.
Under the Armenian constitution, Grigorian has to be replaced by the Armenian
parliament within three months from her resignation. Civil Contract, which
controls the current National Assembly, has given no indication yet who could
replace her.
Vigen Khachatrian, a senior member of the party’s parliamentary group, said on
Thursday that he and his colleagues were encouraged by their parliamentary
leader to propose candidates for the vacant post. They have shown little
interest in doing that,” he said.
“There are probably two reasons,” Khachatrian told reporters. “Either there is
no [suitable] candidate or there are too many of them.”
Taguhi Tovmasian, an opposition deputy chairing the Armenian parliament’s
standing committee on human rights, criticized the delay.
“This is indicative of how the state treats the protection of human rights,”
charged Tovmasian. “If they found that important, they would not display such a
disdainful attitude towards this [state] institution.”
“We are now witnessing processes to which the ombudsperson’s reaction is
extremely important. And yet the office of the ombudsperson is now headless,”
she said, singling out Azerbaijan’s continuing blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh’s
land link with Armenia and its humanitarian consequences for Karabakh’s
population.
The two opposition groups represented in the National Assembly have not
nominated any candidates either. Tovmasian said they realize that the
parliament’s pro-government majority would almost certainly reject their choice
of the human rights defender. In these circumstances, she said, the opposition
also has trouble convincing potential candidates to run for the post.
The opposition lawmakers voted against Grigorian when the parliament elected her
in January 2022. They described her as a government loyalist who will not take
serious action against human rights violations in the country.
Unlike her outspoken predecessor Arman Tatoyan, Grigorian rarely criticized the
government and law-enforcement bodies during her tenure.
Karabakh Downplays Talks With Baku
Nagorno-Karabakh - The main government buildings in Stepanakert, September 7,
2019.
Nagorno-Karabakh’s leadership has accused Azerbaijan of misrepresenting a
meeting of Azerbaijani and Karabakh officials hosted by the commander of Russian
peacekeeping forces on Wednesday.
The two sides gave differing accounts of the agenda and purpose of the meeting
held amid the continuing Azerbaijani blockade of the Lachin corridor.
The authorities in Stepanakert said its participants discussed the restoration
of “unimpeded” traffic thorough the corridor and Armenia’s electricity and
natural gas supplies to Karabakh also blocked by Baku.
An official Azerbaijani readout of the talks said, however, that they focused on
the Karabakh Armenians’ “integration into Azerbaijan.” One of the Azerbaijani
negotiators, Ramin Mammadov, told Azerbaijani media that this is the key
objective of the “dialogue.”
“The participants of the meeting did not discuss issues related to the political
status of the Republic of Artsakh,” read a statement released by the Karabakh
foreign ministry late on Wednesday. “The comments made by the Azerbaijani side
regarding the results of the meeting do not correspond to reality.”
“Such discussions organized for the purpose of solving urgent issues and, in
particular, the lifting of the blockade of Artsakh cannot be a substitute for
full-fledged peace negotiations which are necessary for the comprehensive
settlement of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict,” added the statement.
It also said that the Russian peacekeepers have repeatedly organized such talks
before.
Azerbaijan has been trying to regain full control of Karabakh since its victory
in the 2020 war with Armenia. Speaking after his February 18 talks with Armenian
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in Munich, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev
said Baku is ready to negotiate with the Karabakh Armenians over their
“minority” rights.
The Karabakh president, Arayik Harutiunian, reiterated on Wednesday that
Stepanakert will continue to resist Azerbaijani rule.
Reposted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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