Artak Beglaryan on Nikol Pashinyan's Statement

No one is saying that any other government has jurisdiction over the territory of Armenia, but that does not mean that representatives of another country's government cannot be present in Armenia. This was stated by former Prime Minister of Artsakh Artak Beglaryan in an interview with NEWS.am, addressing Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statement during today's cabinet meeting about certain groups forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh creating threats to Armenia's national security, as well as the assertion that no other government besides the Armenian government can operate in Armenia.

"For example, when visitors come from another country, say a minister or a prime minister, do they say that they are not in an official capacity in Armenia? They can explain and say that yes, the authorities of Artsakh have been displaced and have come here; they are in the Republic of Armenia, but their activities are not extending over the territory of the Republic of Armenia but rather over the territory of Artsakh. And that in no way means that they are functioning in the territory of Armenia. At least they could say this if they are so afraid of Azerbaijan. But they do not say this; they unfortunately and unacceptably target the already very vulnerable authorities of Artsakh and create greater dangers for all of us,” he said.

According to Beglaryan, whether good or bad, the authorities in Artsakh somehow carry out incomplete work that must be supported by Armenia, which unfortunately is not being done, in order to represent the interests and rights of the people of Artsakh and to defend them as much as possible. "The main issue here is related to collective rights. Armenia does not assume any responsibility for the rights and interests of the people of Artsakh; it is the Artsakh authorities who should do this. The authorities of the Republic of Armenia should support this,” Beglaryan declared.

He expressed the opinion that Nikol Pashinyan's statement may have been a reaction to the interview of Artsakh President Samvel Shahramanyan with the French newspaper Figaro, where he stated that a government of exiled Artsakh exists. "I wouldn't say there is a particular danger in that, but it is necessary to formulate it in such a way that yes, the authorities of Artsakh do not extend their jurisdiction over the territory of Armenia. Of course, it would be preferable for the Armenian authorities to recognize the Artsakh authorities and support them, but even if they do not recognize them, they should at least not create additional dangers and threats. Not to mention that the discourse coming from various representatives of the Armenian government suggests that this is a serious threat to Armenia’s security, part of an external agency network, which is very unacceptable. Many Artsakh residents believe that their authorities are less active and their voices are not heard more than what they are doing. It is visible that since October, the state bodies of Artsakh have been acting very cautiously and moderately, as much as they have resources and capability. This means there is also criticism to the contrary. In my impression, the authorities of Artsakh are quite restrained and careful to avoid any manipulations from either inside or from Azerbaijan,” the former prime minister of Artsakh stated.