Azerbaijan presents 4-5 demands regarding the possible opening of the lifeline road: Abrahamyan

Member of the National Assembly from the "I Have Honor" faction, Tigran Abrahamyan states: "The question of the possible opening of a corridor connecting Armenia and Artsakh has been raised in recent days in the context of the possible resignation of the Prime Minister of Artsakh.

According to this logic, both the Armenian authorities and signals from Azerbaijan indicate that the resignation of the Prime Minister will create an opportunity for the opening of the corridor. Setting aside the desires of the Armenian authorities, and even more so those of Azerbaijan, let us attempt to view the situation from a factual perspective. Is Azerbaijan's only desire and demand the resignation of Ruben Vardanyan, and will existing and emerging problems be resolved with his departure?

I would like to remind you that after the corridor was closed, Azerbaijan demanded the cessation of operations at the "Kashen" mine, the deployment of Azerbaijanis in any segment of the corridor to oversee cargo transport from Armenia to Artsakh and vice versa, and the installation of necessary equipment to control bi-directional movement. Another demand that is circulating is related to the withdrawal of heavy military equipment from the Armed Forces, which has been conducted in small volumes and in several phases since the 44-day war.

In other words, Azerbaijan is presenting 4-5 demands regarding the possible opening of the corridor, including, it is presumed, the theme of the Prime Minister's resignation. Does anyone have any guarantees that even after fulfilling these demands, the corridor will be opened? No. Does anyone have any guarantees that if the Azerbaijani demands are met, the corridor will be opened, and that similar issues will not arise again, for instance, in 1-2 months? Or that there will no longer be issues with gas or electricity? Of course not.

The choice is that of Artsakh; they are in a difficult situation, and it is hard to step into their role and burden, dictating solutions or "correct" approaches. In any case, we must look at the existing situation soberly, thoughtfully, and calculatedly; otherwise, Azerbaijan will open a list of preconditions after which the resources for resistance will no longer exist.

I haven't even mentioned that the proposal to appoint Ruben Vardanyan as Prime Minister was made in August/September, with the appointment taking place in November. The appointing authority and interested parties had ample time to consider and weigh their options before making this appointment. It is extremely unserious to start discussing retrospective reasons and risks just two months after that appointment. You should have thought about that sooner. The train has left the station; the situation is different now, and possible solutions to the problems should be considered within the logic of existing realities."