The Ball is Now in Azerbaijan's Court: Mirzoyan on Armenia-Azerbaijan Relations and the Closure of the Lachin Corridor

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan, assures that Armenia has never ceased negotiations aimed at establishing peaceful relations with Azerbaijan. He emphasizes that Armenia is demonstrating a constructive and good-faith approach to the negotiation process, as the ultimate goal is to establish security and peace in the region.

In an interview with Armenpress, the Armenian Foreign Minister also addressed the situation created by Azerbaijan's closure of the Lachin Corridor, the false and contradictory statements from the Azerbaijani side regarding the situation, the process of opening regional communications, and other topics:

• What developments are there in the process of resolving Armenia-Azerbaijan relations? There are opinions that the process has reached a deadlock. Armenia has never stopped negotiations on the treaty to establish peaceful relations with Azerbaijan. Regardless of Azerbaijan's illegal actions in the Lachin Corridor and the postponement of the Moscow meeting, we submitted our new proposals regarding the draft treaty and their justifications to the Azerbaijani side more than a month ago, but have not yet received a response. Thus, the ball is now in Azerbaijan's court.
• Like before, Armenia is demonstrating a constructive and good-faith approach to the negotiation process, as our ultimate goal is to establish security and peace in the region. We are also listening to the calls of the international community and are ready to negotiate more intensively.
• Including concerning the opening of the Lachin Corridor? We have stated many times that Article 6 of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, which regulates issues related to the Lachin Corridor, does not provide any functions for Armenia to ensure the corridor's smooth operation. Ensuring the normal functioning of the corridor is the responsibility of Azerbaijan and the Russian peacekeeping forces. Moreover, issues related to the internal life of Nagorno-Karabakh fall within the competence of the authorities of the NKR, and here too, the Armenian side has no functions.
• I would like to add that the humanitarian crisis emerging in Nagorno-Karabakh due to the blockade of the Lachin Corridor is approaching a humanitarian disaster, and in case of the corridor's immediate resumption, there is an extreme necessity for humanitarian intervention from the international community, particularly the UN.
• The Azerbaijani side has recently begun to justify the closure of the Lachin Corridor by alleging the transfer of ammunition, specifically landmines, from Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has stated in his press conference that the Azerbaijani side has provided data on this matter that they are examining.
• I must note that the Azerbaijani side seems to have tangled itself in its rhetoric surrounding the blockade of the Lachin Corridor. Azerbaijan often states that the corridor is not blocked, then claims that the blockade has environmental reasons, and when it was announced that the specific mine has ceased operations, eco-activists demanded to check the vehicles of the Red Cross and humanitarian cargo passing through the corridor, and then masked individuals stormed a vehicle transporting children returning to Nagorno-Karabakh, escorted by Russian peacekeepers, and threatened the children. Now these actions are being justified by the fictitious transfer of landmines.
• Once again, I emphasize that the Republic of Armenia has only conducted mine laying within its sovereign territory and has done so purely for self-defense purposes, as it has been subjected to military aggression from Azerbaijan in May 2021, November 2021, and September 2022. Currently, the risk of new military aggression against Armenia's sovereign territory remains high.
• The mines that the Azerbaijani side showcases for propaganda purposes and claims are from 2021 and have recently been transferred from Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh, in fact, appeared on Azerbaijani territory as a result of the Azerbaijani aggression against the Republic of Armenia in 2021-2022.
• There is another contradiction regarding the Lachin Corridor. The Azerbaijani authorities claim the corridor is open, while the authorities of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh claim it is closed. This can confuse the international community.
• This is also why we propose sending a fact-finding group to the Lachin Corridor from the UN, OSCE, or any other international organization, and we will continue to promote this idea.
• Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has stated that Yerevan has rejected the proposal to establish a trilateral format between Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. How do you comment on this?
• Armenia is very interested in the development of trilateral dialogue between the countries of the South Caucasus. We view the potential Tbilisi platform in the context of regional trilateral discussions, rather than for Armenia-Azerbaijan bilateral meetings. Currently, the idea of a meeting between the Prime Ministers of Armenia and Georgia and the President of Azerbaijan is circulating. The Armenian side has shown willingness and is still ready for such a meeting, but you must agree that such a meeting does not seem particularly effective and promising when it is not even possible to agree on a simple joint statement expressing commitment to the elimination of hate speech and hostility.
• What can you say about the process of opening regional communications? Recently, the Turkish Foreign Minister also expressed hope that Armenia would engage in eastern-western regional mechanisms in cooperation with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Georgia. Armenia is definitely interested in both fully unblocking transport and economic infrastructures in the region, according to the principles enshrined in the trilateral statements of November 9, 2020, and January 11, 2021, as well as being part of larger transport projects. You are probably aware that a project called "Armenian Crossroad" has been proposed by the Armenian government, combining the North-South and East-West mechanisms. Our proposals regarding the opening of regional communications are valid, and we can implement them at any time, respecting the sovereignty and jurisdiction of countries and national legislation. Essentially, the only and primary obstacle here is Azerbaijan's unfounded demand for an extraterritorial corridor.