Same Politics Continue: Ombudsman on Azerbaijan's Aspirations

Our territorial losses have been more severe when governments did not prioritize the rights of villagers in border disputes, wrote the RA Ombudsman Arman Tatoyan on his Facebook page.

“For instance, from 1918 to 1920, within the First Republic, and later until 1924, the area of 'Aji,' located between the Armenian Barana (currently Novemberyan, Tavush region) and Azerbaijani Qaymakhli (Qaymaklu) villages, consisted of 1002 desyatins. The forests of this location were significantly wooded, while the pastures were extremely suitable for livestock, thus having critical importance for the villagers. They held security significance.

The Azerbaijani authorities at that time made considerable efforts to seize this territory, realizing that this would allow them to separate the northeastern regions of Armenia from each other, thus controlling the roads.

This solution posed the most serious problems not only from a socio-economic perspective but also in terms of security for the residents of the Armenian SSR's villages. The government of that time did not consider the issues through the lens of people's rights and demonstrated inconsistency regarding these vital issues.

As a result, by the decision of the land commission of the Transcaucasian Central Executive Committee on October 31, 1924, the northeastern part of the 'Aji' area, comprising 612 desyatins, was handed over to the Azerbaijan SSR, while the southwestern part, consisting of 390 desyatins, remained with the Armenian SSR. In other words, Armenia was deprived of most of that area.

This once again proves that the Azerbaijani authorities have always had aspirations for the territories of Armenia that could allow them to create divisions, penetrate the territory of Armenia like a wedge, and establish control over roads and civilian infrastructures. This has not been a coincidence, as they have not stopped and have continued the same policy towards new territories.

The Armenian governments have repeatedly continued to neglect the issues regarding the rights of villagers and their security, viewing border issues through territorial-political and mechanical approaches. It is now essential to learn lessons from the past and place human rights at the forefront of border issues, remembering that the Azerbaijani political stance has not changed over the years.

P.S. A desyatin is an old measurement unit of land area equivalent to 2400 square sajen or 1.09 hectares,” Tatoyan wrote.