We Tried to Prevent and Curb the Processes Being Implemented by Pashinyan, Says Metakse Hakobyan

All five factions of the Artsakh Parliament issued a statement two days ago, demanding that the Armenian authorities remain loyal to the Supreme Council's decision from July 8, 1992, and not put the self-determination right of the Artsakh people into doubt. According to the secretary of the opposition "Justice" faction, Metakse Hakobyan, there were grounds for making this statement.

“Recent events leave no doubt that the Armenian authorities have given up on Artsakh; moreover, they have put Artsakh on the scales and are bargaining with it, misleading the Armenian public into thinking they are saving Armenia. But at least the Supreme Council's decision from July 8, 1992, clearly shows that without Stepanakert, there will also be no Yerevan. I highlighted an important point in that decision, which is that any kind of international or domestic document that indicates the Republic of Artsakh is part of Azerbaijan should be considered unacceptable for Armenia,” said Hakobyan.

“Last year in April, the Prime Minister claimed from the National Assembly podium that the international community supposedly demands a lowering of the bar regarding the status of Artsakh. But a year later, we state that the international community has made no such demand; this is merely Azerbaijan's expectation. A year ago, the Armenian government clearly expressed its position and indicated that it was advancing according to that agenda. Over the past year, we have talked many times about the red lines of Artsakh and our right to self-determination. There have also been rallies in Artsakh where the people joined the statements of the National Assembly. This was not merely a political alignment; it was the will of the people, which Pashinyan opposes. The fact is that yesterday during a press conference, he addressed the protest action of 20 citizens in Artsakh against Russian peacekeepers, but to this day, we have not heard any mention of the protest actions that took place in Stepanakert’s Renaissance Square under the leadership of Nikol Pashinyan.

“With our statement two days ago, we again tried to prevent and curb the processes being carried out by the Prime Minister of Armenia and not subordinate to the Supreme Council’s decision from July 8, 1992. The Chancellor of Germany recently spoke about the right of the Artsakh people to self-determination, while Nikol Pashinyan raised security and legal issues again, which clearly contradicts all the decisions and the processes that have been ongoing for many years and continue to be the position of Artsakh,” added Metakse Hakobyan.

The factions of the Artsakh Parliament, recalling the interruptions in gas and electricity, the terrorization of the population, and the restrictions on free movement, stated in the statement that under such circumstances, discussions about direct dialogue with Baku are unacceptable.

The EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus, Toivo Klaar, stated in an interview with NEWS.am today that direct contacts between Baku and representatives of the Armenian population of Karabakh are indispensable. When asked whether it is possible for Artsakh to reconsider its decision in this case, Metakse Hakobyan first deemed the direct contacts between Baku and Karabakh unacceptable, emphasizing that at the last meeting regarding humanitarian issues, Azerbaijan presented its integration agenda, which is unacceptable for Artsakh. As for political issues, according to the deputy, they must be discussed in a trilateral format, as was done for the November 9, 2020 declaration.

“We do not shy away from contacts with Baku, but these contacts must be clearly defined; they must be a negotiable process because these are not negotiations; they are merely discussions on humanitarian issues. In negotiations, Artsakh must be considered an equal negotiating party. And this can happen in some international framework, mediated; no other format can be acceptable to us, especially dialogue. This is a trap, a trap in which Armenia is also suffering from the process, which is unacceptable, because Armenia and Artsakh must be in the same system; that is where our salvation will be. The international community has its interests there; they are generally not interested in the security and rights of Artsakh. The West is solving one problem—continuing to settle scores in this region as well. It has one issue to solve here: to free itself from Russia’s presence in Artsakh; they do not solve any other problem. Dialogue will be the best means to free themselves from Russia, and unfortunately, today the positions of the Armenian authorities lead to that, which is not our position,” stated the opposition deputy.

Metakse Hakobyan sees dangers in direct dialogue with Baku: “The danger is that we affirm Aliyev's thesis that all issues have been resolved by war, that Artsakh is part of Azerbaijan, and that Artsakh has representatives of the Armenian community who go to resolve some humanitarian issues. After that, it is evident that the next step will be integration, including economic integration. This is Azerbaijan's interest, while the West’s is to rid this region of Russia’s presence. Unfortunately, Armenia does not have its own interest in this case, or its interest aligns with Azerbaijan's.”

Referring to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statement, in which he avoided directly answering whether Artsakh sees itself as part of Azerbaijan and whether he is constrained from stating that Artsakh will never be part of Azerbaijan, Metakse Hakobyan responded: “Nikol Pashinyan is constrained by the promises made to Azerbaijan; he is constrained by his own agenda and views, and in his agenda, the salvation of Artsakh is not present. We have repeatedly stated that these foreign powers have occupied Armenia to free themselves from Artsakh.”