Resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh Issue Without Negotiations with Artsakh is Impossible, Says Pashinyan

The Republic of Artsakh is a full participant in the negotiation process, and resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh issue is impossible without negotiations with the Republic of Artsakh. This was stated by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan during a joint meeting of the Security Councils of Armenia and Artsakh held in Stepanakert, co-chaired by the President of the Republic of Artsakh Bako Sahakyan.

“In this regard, I find it very important that, in essence, our joint work is forming, if not already formed, new content for the Nagorno-Karabakh negotiations, and I believe that this content first represents the interests of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh more comprehensively, and second, this content is constructive in terms of creating opportunities for conflict resolution. In this context, I also emphasize the discourse and discussion that took place within the framework of the Munich Security Conference, where that same content gained flesh and blood, was clearly formulated, and we conditionally named it the Munich Principles,” said the Prime Minister.

According to him, one of the cornerstone themes of the cooperation between Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia is security because Artsakh and Armenia are a common security space, a common security environment, and the agenda here cannot in any way be separated or differentiated. In this regard, the combat readiness of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh, as well as the established moral and psychological atmosphere within the Armed Forces, are highly emphasized.

“In general, I can note that the Government of the Republic of Armenia has recently taken significant measures and allocated substantial funds to implement essential and tangible changes in the army, starting from the acquisition of weapons to social guarantees for officers and rank-and-file personnel, as well as monetary allowances. As a result of all this, naturally, our expectation is that the discipline, moral-psychological atmosphere, and relationships in the army will be brought to a completely new level, and I believe that this issue is indeed solvable,” said Nikol Pashinyan.

He emphasized that the army has absolute and undeniable authority in the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh. Thus, according to him, there cannot be any discussion or topic related to the army in either the Republic of Armenia or Artsakh because for the Armenian people as a whole, the army is an absolute, unquestionable value.

“Unfortunately, we have a phenomenon where the authority of serving in the army nevertheless somewhat lags behind the authority of the army itself, and our practical task is to equalize the authority of serving in the army with that of the army, and today we will, of course, discuss what steps need to be taken. In terms of the security environment, I believe we should also register another reality: of course, the Armed Forces are our most primary guarantee and guarantor of security, but I want to say that the army should never be left alone in carrying out that mission, and the functional burden on the army should be somewhat alleviated. I believe that we must ultimately acknowledge that democracy is also one of the important guarantees that should strengthen and enhance the security of the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh,” said Prime Minister Pashinyan.