Video: Pashinyan on Possible Meeting with Aliyev and the Artsakh Issue

The Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, met yesterday with the Armenian community of Iran and addressed the issue of resolving the Artsakh conflict.

He emphasized that Armenia will continue to pursue the recognition of the right to self-determination of Artsakh. One of the primary goals of the Armenian government is to elevate the subjectivity of Artsakh in the negotiation process.

“In the near future, we have preliminarily discussed having a meeting with the President of Azerbaijan. Essentially, this will be a meeting without an agenda, but one of the important focal points of that meeting will be the discussion of the negotiation format, which means that as long as we do not reach an agreement on this format, these interactions and discussions cannot be considered official negotiations. I have stated that I speak on behalf of Armenia because I am the Prime Minister, and I do not speak on behalf of Artsakh because the Republic of Artsakh has its own authorities, its own president, and its own government. The authorities of Artsakh must speak on behalf of Artsakh in the negotiation process. This is very important, and we must do everything to ensure that Artsakh has a new level of subjectivity in the negotiation process,” Pashinyan said.

He noted that the agreement is to discuss the possibilities of resolving the issue peacefully. “Do I see such possibilities today, and can I say that I see any progress in this conversation process? Unfortunately, I cannot say such a thing. When international partners come and ask us whether we are ready for compromises, we simply respond, who told you that we must be the first responders to this question? Ask Azerbaijan if they are ready for compromises or not. We will not answer this question until Azerbaijan has provided a clear answer on the matter,” the Prime Minister of Armenia stated.

He added that we can substantiate clearly why Azerbaijan must be the first responder to this question, as it is Azerbaijan that speaks daily with threats regarding the resolution of the Artsakh issue. “If anyone thinks that they can solve the Artsakh issue through force or threats, they are gravely mistaken. They are gravely mistaken precisely because that speaker does not realize that they are dealing not only with the Republic of Armenia and its citizens but with the entire Armenian community, which is today more united than ever,” Nikol Pashinyan remarked.

Video source: Shantnews.am.