In the Negotiation Process, Artsakh Was Not Considered Only Armenian Territory, Prime Minister

In the negotiation process up until 2018 and thereafter, Artsakh was not considered only Armenian territory. I mentioned this in my previous interview, albeit in a less direct way. Since November 2020, I have addressed questions about whether the status of Shushi was included in the negotiations or not. This was stated by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan during an online press conference, responding to the Armenian authorities' positions on the occupied territories of Hadrut and Shushi by Azerbaijan.

“I have also highlighted the principle from the well-known Madrid Principles that representatives of any nationality should participate in the proposed referendum in the same proportions as existed in 1988. This essentially means that both Armenians must participate in the decision concerning the future of Artsakh, as well as Azerbaijanis living in Artsakh,” he said.

“I draw attention to a strange fact. Subsequently, this aspect disappears from the negotiation principles, and it is not Azerbaijan that raises this issue, but the Republic of Armenia, under Serzh Sargsyan's signature, appeals to the co-chairs to restore this provision. Did Serzh Sargsyan dream that Azerbaijanis would participate in the decision regarding the fate of Artsakh? Of course not, he wanted to return the provision on maintaining proportions from 1988, because at that time, the absolute majority of the population of Artsakh were Armenians,” he noted.

According to Nikol Pashinyan, in 2016, during the negotiation process, Serzh Sargsyan noted that the omission of this provision could lead to questions regarding proportions. “The elimination of this provision, which has been blurred in the negotiation documents, has resulted in the loss of a very important buffer. In my previous interview, I stated that the Armenian side has never disputed the issue of Azerbaijani participation, which, according to the negotiation package, should include the residents of Artsakh; I did not create that. There were interpretations suggesting that it was my dream for such a formulation to be in place. This formulation I inherited,” Pashinyan added.