Arman Abovyan: Three Key Issues Exist in the Current Agenda of the Armenian Authorities

Former MP Arman Abovyan writes: "What is happening in post-war Armenia will become the subject of deep studies in political science educational institutions and analytical centers in the future. Yes, without unnecessarily intensifying the colors, it can be stated that the current authorities are losing in all directions everything that is possible, and sometimes even failing what seemed impossible to fail. With enviable persistence, they are generating processes that will inevitably lead to a situation where the physical existence of both the Republics of Armenia and Artsakh will become a very clear and specific agenda question. Judge for yourself.

The current agenda of the Armenian authorities features three key issues. These include the so-called "delimitation", again the so-called "unblocking of communications", and (forgive me for repeating) the absurd and meaningless (yes, indeed meaningless) process of starting a "peace era" for Armenia.

Let's start from the beginning.

1. Delimitation and demarcation imply that there should at least be a common approach and vision between the interested states, and at a minimum, a principled position of mutual ACCEPTANCE towards one another. If the Armenian side is simply tearing itself apart and trying to show the Azerbaijani side its "peaceful intentions", the Azerbaijani side very clearly states that it has claims over the entire territory of the Republic of Armenia and, as proof of its words, has occupied Armenia's sovereign territories.
2. Moreover, it is very important to note that Azerbaijanis do not hide the fact that any delimitation cannot be an obstacle for them in the future to seize the entirety of Armenia's territory. What’s more, it is state-level prohibited in Azerbaijan to mention names of Armenian settlements; instead, it is instructed to use only fabricated Turkish-language names. Now think a bit: why is this done by Aliyev's Nazi propaganda machine?

But let’s return to the core issues of demarcation. Apparently, the super-peaceful authorities of Armenia are unaware that, for example, the established and demarcated border between Syria and Turkey in no way prevented the Turks from invading Syrian sovereign territory and establishing their authority in the occupied areas. Let me reveal a secret to all demarcation advocates: The borders of a state are drawn not based on any maps, but only and exclusively emerging from the security interests of the state. This is the only principle on which a normal state should be based.

In addition, it is interesting to observe how the Armenian authorities stubbornly circumvent the obvious reality that it is impossible to carry out border adjustments when your territory is occupied. It is so obvious that you are left astonished seeing how the Pashinyan administration tries to prove the opposite with a serious facade.

It is equally important to mention that if the delimitation is carried out without clearly establishing the INDEPENDENT status of Artsakh (at least as a negotiating principle), then the demarcation will lead to transferring the Artsakh issue into Azerbaijan’s "internal" political domain. People who contest these obvious realities can just as easily argue that, for example, the Earth is round or that it is dark at night.

...the remaining two theses will be discussed next. ...to be continued"