Arthur Vanetsyan's Resolution on Recognizing Artsakh's Independence

“The process of recognizing Artsakh's independence by Armenia has been a contentious topic over the past 30 years in that those opposed cite various arguments, particularly that Armenia's recognition of Artsakh would mean a departure from the negotiation format, which is fraught with the threat of war. Of course, as the saying goes, any negotiation is preferable to war, but war nonetheless occurred, with the worst outcome for Armenia and Artsakh. This is a separate topic for discussion, but one thing is clear: the current authorities failed to ensure the continuity of negotiations, which led to war.

It is also evident that the issue of recognition of Artsakh gained urgency right at the onset of the war; even representatives of the highest authorities of Artsakh and Armenia voiced intentions to initiate the process, but this did not happen, apparently because Nikol Pashinyan envisioned the situation differently or perhaps did not envision it at all.

In the current situation, the key players in the political arena hardly speak about the need for recognizing Artsakh's independence, which shifts future political developments and negotiations back to the same track as before. However, recently, from the latest episode of 'Adekvati' titled 'Kill Paul', it became known that the 'Homeland' party has included the issue of recognizing Artsakh's independence—at least within the borders of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast—in its programmatic principles. Of course, it is clear that this political force aims for more, but at least the minimum has been recorded in program documents.

Arthur Vanetsyan, being a high-ranking officer, has understood that without recognizing Artsakh, it is impossible to ensure full security and existence for Artsakh. The problem also lies in the fact that under the current arrangement, when part of the original territories of Artsakh has been lost due to the outcome of the war, recognizing Artsakh's independence along the lines of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast—including a corridor through the Kashatagh region necessary for land communication with Armenia—will provide a legal basis for future negotiations; otherwise, the international community will find the aspirations for complete independence of Artsakh incomprehensible.

Of course, the expansion and implementation of this program will only be possible if the two Armenian states put their backs into it, but it is evident that under the current authorities or in the event of their reproduction, this is not feasible. On the other hand, since a significant portion of our society—primarily the undecided segment—is tired of making choices based on personalities, it is crucial to form public perceptions around such programmatic approaches, which may perhaps become one of the dominant reasons for a willingness to vote for any political force in elections,” writes the daily newspaper 'Pats'.