Interest of Major Players in Our Region Has Diminished: Nikol Pashinyan

Peace is not only possible but necessary. This was stated by Nikol Pashinyan in an interview with Euronews. “This is my conviction, my position. This is what I believe in. But for this to happen, it is important for the international community to understand the important nuances and why we are not progressing at a rapid pace,” he emphasized.

He referred back to their penultimate meeting in Brussels, which was attended by Charles Michel, President of the European Council. “At that meeting, the President of Azerbaijan and I agreed, or rather understood, that Armenia and Azerbaijan recognize each other’s territorial integrity: Armenia’s territory is 29,800 km², Azerbaijan’s territory is 86,600 km². The mutual recognition of territorial integrity is key. Up until now, the President of Azerbaijan has not publicly confirmed our agreement, but he hasn’t denied it either. This is a detail that does not contribute to creating a trustful atmosphere,” Pashinyan noted.

Pashinyan also discussed the work of the OSCE Minsk Group, which was established for the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. He stated that since February 24, 2022, the co-chairs of the group have simply ceased to collaborate. “Some countries have decided that they no longer wish to engage with the other participants of the process; hence come all the other problems,” he added.

The Prime Minister further mentioned that due to the events in Ukraine, the interest of not only Russia but also other major geopolitical players in our region has diminished, as practically all the attention of the international community is focused on Ukraine.