VIDEO. Pashinyan Appeals to Aliyev; Full Speech of the Prime Minister

During a working visit to New York, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan delivered a speech at the UN Headquarters at the 77th session of the General Assembly. Below is the full text of the Armenian Prime Minister's speech.

“Mr. President, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is an honor for me to return to the General Assembly, although I would have preferred to be here with a more positive message, considering all the challenges and difficulties the world has gone through in the last few years. However, my speech will focus on Azerbaijan's recent unprovoked aggression against the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia and its overall impact on the stability of the South Caucasus.

On September 13, Azerbaijan launched an unprovoked and unjustified military aggression against Armenia. Utilizing heavy artillery, multiple launch rocket systems, and combat drones, the Azerbaijani armed forces shelled 36 residential areas and communities deep within the sovereign territory of Armenia, including Goris, Jermuk, Vardenis, Kapan, and Gegarkunik. This was not a border clash; it was a direct, undeniable assault on Armenia's sovereignty and territorial integrity, condemned and discussed during the recent sessions of the UN Security Council and beyond.

The Azerbaijani attack deliberately targeted civilians and vital civilian infrastructures. Jermuk is one of Armenia's main resort and tourist areas, and now, as a result of the Azerbaijani aggression, all hotels, resorts, and recreation centers in Jermuk have been closed. All residents of this city have been displaced. The total number of temporarily displaced people from Gegharkunik, Vayots Dzor, and Syunik provinces of Armenia exceeds 7,600, mostly women and the elderly, including 1,437 children and 99 persons with disabilities.

Approximately 192 homes, 3 hotels, 2 schools, and 1 medical facility have been partially or completely destroyed. 7 electrical infrastructures, 5 water infrastructures, 3 gas pipelines, and 1 bridge have been damaged. 2 ambulances and 4 private vehicles have been shelled. The Kechut reservoir has also been targeted and shelled. Journalists and ambulances have been targeted and shelled as well.

As a result of the aggression, the number of casualties and missing persons exceeds 207 at this moment; 3 of the deceased and 2 of the missing are civilians. 293 servicemen and 8 civilians have been injured, and at least 20 servicemen have been captured. There is evidence of numerous incidents of torture and mutilation of captured or already dead servicemen, extra-judicial killings, and cruel treatment of Armenian prisoners of war, as well as humiliating treatment of corpses.

The bodies of Armenian female servicemen have been particularly mutilated and then “proudly” filmed by Azerbaijani soldiers. Videos about such horrific war crimes and crimes against humanity are spread and glorified by certain users on Azerbaijani social networks.

Undoubtedly, such unimaginable atrocities are a direct result of a decades-long policy by the political leadership to sow anti-Armenian hatred and animosity within Azerbaijani society.

In parallel with this attack, the official discourse and various sources of information suggest that Azerbaijan intends to occupy other territories of Armenia, which must be prevented. I want to emphasize that the risk of a new aggression from Azerbaijan remains very high, especially considering that Azerbaijan violates the ceasefire every day, and the number of casualties and injuries may change at any moment. Another reason for further escalation could be the inadequate response of regional security organizations to this situation, which raised serious questions within Armenian society.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Despite the above-mentioned facts, Azerbaijan is trying to present itself as a country striving for peace in our region with Armenia. Listening to what Azerbaijan says from the outside, you might even be impressed by its commitment to peace efforts. And to create such an impression, Azerbaijan is using themes such as the peace treaty with Armenia, delimitation of borders, and opening regional communications.

Why do we not have tangible progress in these directions? The reason is very simple. Azerbaijan uses all these themes to press territorial claims against Armenia. For instance, one of the key points of the peace treaty is mutual recognition of territorial integrity between Armenia and Azerbaijan. We have already stated that we are ready to do this, but Azerbaijan has not done so to date. On the contrary, Azerbaijan openly voices that all of southern and eastern Armenia, even the capital Yerevan, is Azerbaijani land.

On the other hand, Azerbaijan continues to occupy substantial territories of Armenia, and, as I said, the risk of new aggression from Azerbaijan remains very high.

In this regard, I direct an official and public question to the President of Azerbaijan: can you show the map of Armenia that you recognize or are ready to recognize as the Republic of Armenia? Why am I asking this? Because it may turn out that from the perspective of official Azerbaijan, only half or even less of Armenia's territory is the Republic of Armenia. If Azerbaijan recognizes Armenia's territorial integrity, not theoretically but concretely, I mean the entirety of our internationally recognized 29,800 square kilometers, it would mean that we can sign a peace treaty recognizing each other's territorial integrity.

Otherwise, we will have a fictitious peace treaty, and after that, Azerbaijan will use the delimitation process for new territorial claims and occupation.

As you know, in May, a bilateral commission for delimitation and security of borders was established, and two meetings of the commission have been held. Prior to the establishment of the commission, last year, Azerbaijan occupied more than 40 square kilometers of Armenian territory. After that, one of Azerbaijan's justifications was that Armenia allegedly refused to create a delimitation commission. We certainly did not refuse; we only insisted that a mechanism for ensuring border security be established simultaneously.

Ultimately, at the request of our international partners, who insisted that the work of the border commission itself would be a reliable factor for border security, we agreed to commence work. And now, when the delimitation and security commission has been formed and is operating, Azerbaijan initiated a new phase of aggression. Meanwhile, some of those international partners remain silent. But how do we explain Azerbaijan's aggression? You know, when someone has excessive aggression, a reason will always be found. As it is said in the movie, it is always possible to find a reason. For example, why was Prince Hamlet killed? Who killed him, how, when, and why, does not matter; the reality is that Azerbaijan is trying to and will continue to use the delimitation process for territorial claims against Armenia.

Another topic is the opening of regional transport communication links. Azerbaijan is trying to present Armenia as the obstructive party in this discussion. The reality is that Armenia is ready to open its roads to Azerbaijan within the framework of our national legislation. Moreover, recently, a draft government decision was published, which envisages opening three checkpoints on the border with Azerbaijan for the implementation of Article 9 of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020. According to this draft, citizens and freight carriers of Azerbaijan will have the right to use the existing roads of Armenia to travel to the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic from Azerbaijan.

The Armenian authorities had the political will to unilaterally adopt this decision. But Azerbaijani officials tell us that they do not need these routes. What do they want? They want a new route to be built. This is also acceptable for Armenia; however, according to Article 9 of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, a new route can be constructed by mutual agreement of the parties. Armenia is ready to build a route that operates in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Armenia and under sovereign control.

In this case, what is the meaning of Azerbaijan's claims? Azerbaijan hints that Armenia should provide an extraterritorial corridor, and this supposedly stems from Article 9 of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020. The trilateral statement is a public document, and there is nothing in Article 9 about any corridor, extraterritoriality, and so on. So, what is Azerbaijan's goal? To create a new crisis as a pretext for new aggression and new territorial claims against Armenia.

We have exchanged packages of proposals with Azerbaijan on the topic of opening communications, and if Azerbaijan accepts that these routes should operate in accordance with national legislation, we can reach a decision on this issue very quickly.

By the way, the trilateral statements of November 9, 2020, and January 11, 2021, stipulate that not only Armenia should provide routes to Azerbaijan, but Azerbaijan should also provide routes to Armenia. And we have not received anything so far.

Regarding the corridor formulation, it is very important to note that the trilateral statement of November 9 only mentions one corridor, and that is the Lachin corridor for Nagorno-Karabakh.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

One of the decisive factors for regional stability is the comprehensive resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which will address and guarantee the rights and security of the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh. The recent aggression occurs at a time when the humanitarian consequences of the 2020 war in Nagorno-Karabakh have yet to be resolved. The post-war rehabilitation of Nagorno-Karabakh, the psychosocial issues of the displaced population, the repatriation of Armenian prisoners of war, and the preservation of cultural and religious heritage remain on our government’s agenda.

Nevertheless, the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh need the support of the international community. We call for support for the safe and unhindered entry of UN humanitarian agencies into Nagorno-Karabakh to assess the humanitarian and human rights situation on the ground and to ensure the protection of cultural heritage. We believe that the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and an independent fact-finding mission from UNESCO need access to the conflict zone in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Unfortunately, Azerbaijan is artificially blocking both missions by imposing political preconditions, essentially obstructing the access of the independent fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh.

It is also condemnable that Azerbaijan has halted the repatriation process of Armenian prisoners of war, among other actions, subjecting them to artificial trials, in gross violation of international humanitarian law and its own obligations, and contrary to the calls of the international community.

Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Sustainable regional peace and stability is our goal. Last year, through democratic early elections, our people resolutely supported the government’s peace agenda and reaffirmed Armenia's commitment to proceeding on a democratic path. It is very important to note that the target of Azerbaijani attacks is not only Armenia's independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity, but also Armenia's democracy. Contrary to the expectations of certain forces, Armenia has remained democratic following the devastating war of 2020, using free, fair, and democratic elections as a tool to exit the domestic political crisis. The international community unanimously acknowledged and highly appreciated this fact.

Armenian democracy is struggling in an environment where Azerbaijan exerts force every day to unilaterally impose its agenda, to put an end to the Armenian statehood, independence, and democracy.

But I am here to declare that we are determined to protect our democracy, independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity by all means. I want to emphasize that diplomatic solutions are an absolute priority for us, and the full engagement and support of the international community is extremely important. In this regard, I want to note that an international observer mission in the border areas of Armenia and Azerbaijan will be an important factor for regional stability.

It is undeniable that, in the interests of regional stability and in accordance with the norms and principles of international law, Azerbaijani armed forces must withdraw from the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I want to emphasize once again: we are determined to establish peace in our region, but we need the full support of the international community, which will stand beside a sovereign and democratic state and people facing aggression—against the norms and principles of international law.

I believe in the potential for establishing long-term stability, security, and peace, and Armenia is committed to continuing diplomatic efforts towards that goal.

Thank you for your attention.”