VIDEO. The topic of the Q&A was not about the Armenian or Azerbaijani status of Shushi. Rubinyan on the Prime Minister's speech

The Prime Minister's speech has been entirely distorted and misrepresented both in the media and in the statements of various opposition political figures. This was stated by Ruben Rubinyan, a member of the 'My Step' faction in the National Assembly, during a briefing with journalists.

“In general, the topic of this question-and-answer session was not the Armenian or Azerbaijani status of Shushi. Shushi is a historically Armenian city, and that is a historical fact. As of 1987, around 90 percent of Shushi's population consisted of Azerbaijanis, and throughout the negotiation process, when discussing the return of refugees, it was about those refugees who lived there before the wars of the 1990s,” he noted.

The Prime Minister asked whether, if he accepted the return of refugees to Shushi, which would lead to a 90 percent Azerbaijani population, would Shushi continue to remain Armenian under those circumstances? In response to this rhetorical question about whether Shushi with a 90 percent or greater Azerbaijani population would still be considered Armenian with his agreement, I believe the answer is no,” Rubinyan stated.

When asked whether the refugees would not be under Armenian control upon their return, Rubinyan replied with a question: “Was Shushi under Armenian control at the beginning of 1992? No, Shushi was liberated after 1992. Shushi, with a population of 90 percent or more Azerbaijanis, was not under Armenian control at the beginning of 1992, despite the fact that it was part of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast and Artsakh,” he explained.