Serzh Sargsyan Sends Open Letter to Biden, Putin, and Macron

Former Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has addressed an open letter to U.S. President Joe Biden, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and French President Emmanuel Macron.

"Open Letter

To U.S. President Mr. Joe Biden,

To Russian President Mr. Vladimir Putin,

To French President Mr. Emmanuel Macron

Your Excellencies,

A few days ago, in one of the villages of the Martakert region of Artsakh, three-year-old Leon and six-year-old Gitan drowned while searching for food after their mother, who had gone to the city, failed to return. The blockade of Artsakh has lasted more than seven months, claiming the lives of both adults and children, ordinary people whose only crime is being born and living on the land of their ancestors and cherishing life.

We are grateful to all influential countries and international organizations for their clear statements regarding this reality. They hold great significance for those fighting for survival in Artsakh. However, unfortunately, they did not save the lives of little Leon and Gitan, and what is most horrifying is that these statements may not save many other children and adults’ lives tomorrow morning, not in some abstract future.

Today, the physical existence of 120,000 people in Artsakh is literally at risk. We have spoken with each of you on multiple occasions about the Armenian Genocide of 1915 and its aftermath. Today, 108 years later, we are alarmingly close to a repetition of those horrific events using modern methods.

Mr. Presidents,

I address you primarily as the leaders of the co-chair countries of the OSCE Minsk Group, as leaders who personally know the stage at which the negotiation process for resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh issue stood before 2018, when our society made an emotional choice and transferred power to an individual with no relation to the perception of statehood.

I understand that many have had the opportunity to try to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh issue by exploiting that individual’s illogical actions that have nothing to do with the interests of his own country. But the fact is that the issue remains unresolved, the problems are deepening significantly, and that person clearly no longer has the mandate from our people to recognize Artsakh within the framework of any other country, nor does he have a mandate from the Artsakh people to autonomously determine their fate.

I appeal to you as the leaders of countries with an indisputable institutional memory regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. Unlike the authorities in Armenia, your systems today have serious experts and knowledgeable individuals in the negotiation process concerning Artsakh who are familiar with all the details and are aware of all the phases.

I address you as a former partner, a person whose goals and principles you are well acquainted with. I am addressing you in this format because I currently do not have means of direct communication with you, nor do I have formats for visits and private discussions, and the party channels are also very weak, as the opposition party leaders in our country are either under severe repression or simply imprisoned.

I write to express that what is happening in Artsakh leads to a terrifying disaster. I ask you to give the people of Artsakh a chance to live. It is a great tragedy for me that years ago we were discussing solutions that would allow the people of Artsakh to live with dignity in their own land, and now we are speaking about their mere right to live.

We clearly see all of your commendable efforts toward resolving the issue. However, what is happening today will not lead to the kinds of solutions you sincerely envision. Direct negotiations with an experienced dictator and an incompetent individual cannot conclude at any logical point.

Every satisfied demand of the imposing party will generate another that is even more difficult to meet, and this will continue indefinitely and will be accompanied by great disasters. Remaining silent or allocating even less time to the Artsakh issue today means that your countries will soon be forced to start allocating time to the "Armenia issue." This is a very visible scenario in the case of an inept negotiator, especially since a significant portion of Armenia's sovereign territory is already occupied in front of everyone's eyes.

I ask you, above all, to stop the humanitarian disaster in Artsakh. I believe you can do this. Force the dictator to open the path of life. A fascist who has made the killing of Armenians a way of life cannot forever ignore the clear messages from serious international organizations and countries. Stop the catastrophe, secure the basic conditions for the human habitation of the people of Artsakh, guarantee them, and then proceed to the diplomatic efforts in finding solutions, I urge you.

Tomorrow may be too late.

Respectfully,

Former President of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan