We do not deny that the Armed Forces of Armenia are carrying out mine-laying operations in the sovereign territory of Armenia: Mirzoyan

The statements from Baku regarding the demarcation and delimitation between Armenia and Azerbaijan on the basis of historical maps violate the obligations undertaken in Prague and Sochi to carry out delimitation work between the two countries based on the UN Charter and the Alma-Ata Declaration. This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan, in an interview with Armenpress.

In the interview, Mirzoyan also addressed Azerbaijan's claims that Armenia has refused to participate in the tripartite meeting in Brussels, discussed the preparations for a peace treaty, and assessed the current situation in the region.

Question: Azerbaijan claims that the Armenian side has refused to participate in the tripartite meeting in Brussels. How do you comment on this fact?

Answer: An agreement was reached regarding the next meeting during the quadrilateral meeting in Prague. We remain committed to this agreement and again express our readiness to organize a meeting between the Prime Minister of Armenia, the President of Azerbaijan, the President of France, and the President of the European Council within acceptable deadlines. We believe that the meeting that took place in this format in Prague was quite effective and important in the context of the normalization process between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Armenian side, as before, is interested in normalizing relations.

Question: Baku is again voicing the thesis of conducting the delimitation process based on historical maps. What is Yerevan's position in this regard?

Answer: Such statements violate the commitments undertaken in Prague and Sochi to carry out delimitation work based on the UN Charter and the Alma-Ata Declaration. Within the framework of these commitments, delimitation work should be carried out based on the legal acts that had legal force and significance as of the date of the USSR's collapse in 1991. Moreover, these acts should be based on official documents from organizations that had the proper authority to conduct mapping, compile maps, and publish maps as of that date. Therefore, speaking of historical maps is at least incomprehensible both in terms of definition and content. It is also necessary to emphasize the danger of the general rhetoric of historical maps for the independence of our countries, because if we emphasize historical maps, it may turn out that the current territories of both the Republic of Armenia and, even more so, the Republic of Azerbaijan have been territories of other states for centuries.

In this context, I would like to draw attention to another point: despite the agreements reached as a result of the meetings in Sochi on November 26, 2021, and Brussels on April 6, 2022, to create commissions primarily aimed at border security, following the establishment of the relevant commissions, a new aggression was carried out against the Republic of Armenia by Azerbaijan in September 2022, and new territories were occupied by Azerbaijan. This casts doubt not only on Azerbaijan's desire to respect the agreements and international law, but also on its intentions regarding the activities of these commissions altogether.

Question: The President of Azerbaijan insists that Armenia has recognized Azerbaijan's territorial integrity.

Answer: We have addressed this question many times. However, the President of Azerbaijan continuously states in his speeches that Armenia has recognized Azerbaijan's territorial integrity without ever mentioning that Azerbaijan has also recognized Armenia's territorial integrity. Does this fact and various references to 'historical' maps mean that Azerbaijan does not recognize Armenia's territorial integrity and has claims over the territories of the Republic of Armenia?

The President of Azerbaijan also claims that peace has been established around his country and that there is no risk of escalation, then, in response to another question, states that if Armenia does not sign a peace treaty, there will be no peace. This means that the responsibility for any possible escalation is assumed by the President of Azerbaijan, especially since Armenia is fully engaged in substantive discussions to establish peace.

Question: How would you assess the ongoing work on the preparation of the peace treaty?

Answer: As you are aware, we have presented our proposals to Azerbaijan regarding the normalization of relations or the draft peace treaty, and just the day before, we received their responses. Thus, discussions are ongoing. We hope to reach an agreement on this issue as soon as possible, and our international partners' mediating efforts can also play a significant role in this process.

Question: Azerbaijan also claims that Armenia refuses to provide precise maps of mined areas and continues to lay new mines in areas adjacent to Artsakh, resulting in numerous casualties. How do you comment?

Answer: As you are aware, the Republic of Armenia has unilaterally transferred to Azerbaijan all maps of the mined areas available to it, despite the absence of such an obligation both under trilateral agreements and international law. Moreover, we have expressed our readiness to cooperate with international partners to assist in the interpretation of the transferred maps. At the same time, I find it necessary to emphasize that mines were laid in Artsakh and adjacent areas during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, primarily by Azerbaijan, which controlled those areas during the first war. Appeals from the Armenian side for cooperation have gone unanswered, and furthermore, Azerbaijan has created obstacles for the implementation of mine clearance operations by all possible means. As a result of the politicization of the issue of providing assistance to Armenia in this area, Azerbaijan even blocked the activities of the OSCE Yerevan office in 2017.

A report by the International Committee of the Red Cross in 2019 noted that during their missions in Artsakh, 747 people have become victims of mines, 59% of whom were civilians, and this is in light of the fact that the authorities of Artsakh have only begun to account for the number of victims from mine explosions since 2004. Regarding Azerbaijan's publications that the Armenian side has planted Armenian-made mines in Artsakh, I must note that the displayed mines were discovered by the Azerbaijani side not in Artsakh but in the areas of the Republic of Armenia that it occupied in 2021-22, and now they are trying to use them for propaganda purposes. We do not deny that the Armed Forces of Armenia are carrying out mine-laying operations in the sovereign territory of Armenia, and this is due to the constantly high risk of new military aggression by Azerbaijan, as we witnessed in May and November 2021, as well as in September 2022. Azerbaijan has also carried out aggressive actions in this region in Artsakh, particularly in February and August of this year, thus proving that the population of Artsakh requires defensive forces to avoid ethnic cleansing.

As for the accusations from Azerbaijan that Armenian military units remain stationed in Artsakh, this also does not correspond to reality in any way. Prime Minister Pashinyan even proposed to send an international fact-finding mission to Artsakh to verify the validity of our claims, which was rejected by the President of Azerbaijan.

Question: How do you generally assess the current situation in the region?

Answer: We regret to note that despite ongoing negotiations in various directions, Azerbaijan continues to make maximalist and militaristic statements, unfounded accusations against the Armenian side, and threats of the use of force. Additionally, the Azerbaijani armed forces continue to be present in the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, and military provocative actions are periodically carried out by Azerbaijan. The combination of these facts shows that the situation remains extremely tense, and all our international partners should exert additional efforts to curb Azerbaijan's ambitions and maintain the fragile peace in the South Caucasus. The Armenian side, as before, is ready to invest all efforts to find mutually acceptable solutions and establish lasting and stable peace in the region.