Digging into the Past Is Not a Constructive Approach: Mirzoyan

I do not think that digging into the past is a constructive approach and will help us reach a mutually beneficial solution. This was stated by Armenia's Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan during discussions at the Antalya Diplomatic Forum, responding to the preconditions set forth by the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister.

Mirzoyan suggested focusing on the present and the future. “If we focus now on history and start discussing which territory belonged to whom 100 years ago, or who killed more people, we will come to a different conflict. The government and people of Armenia are in favor of establishing lasting peace. After long negotiations, we managed to finalize the text of the peace agreement and have proposed to immediately start consultations regarding the place and timing of its signing. Will the peace agreement resolve all possible issues? Of course not. There is no agreement in the world that can do that. This is the beginning of establishing relations. Certainly, there are many remaining issues, and we can continue discussing them, examining possibilities for cooperation.

In the agreed text of the treaty, we have a provision that a bilateral commission will be established to discuss all these issues, including those questions that can be interpreted in one way or another. It’s a matter of approach and decision—what do we, as foreign ministers, offer to our societies, what do we, as countries, offer to the region and the world: should we delve again into the depths of history, or should we ensure a common future and prosperity for our citizens? Now there are all the positive prerequisites for signing the treaty, starting a new phase of dialogue, and opening a new chapter of peaceful relations and prosperity in the region.

Minister Bayramov spoke about specific preconditions or terms. We have expressed readiness multiple times to initiate the process of dissolving the Minsk Group. This structure can be dissolved when there is no longer conflict. It's an interesting question: do we have a conflict right now or not? On the ground, no, we do not have one, but is there a signed and ratified peace agreement regarding peace and the establishment of relations? They can continue to philosophize about this issue, but in our view, the solution is to sign the agreement, put an end to the conflict at the institutional level and, if you want, resolve it in 10 minutes on the same day by signing one document after another. I’m not even saying which we should sign first. Let’s sign the peace agreement, send a joint document to the OSCE member states and its secretariat regarding dissolution, create a bilateral commission, and discuss all possible issues.

Minister Bayramov also talked about the Constitution of Armenia. Very well, if you wish, I will speak. We also have concerns regarding the Constitution of Azerbaijan, and we do not mention this to merely reflectively express concern or put forth a condition. The Constitution of Azerbaijan makes reference to the Declaration of Independence, by which the Republic of Azerbaijan claims to be the successor of the First Republic of Azerbaijan. And we know that the First Republic of Azerbaijan declared its sovereignty over a much larger territory than the current Republic of Azerbaijan, including currently sovereign territories of Armenia. It’s a matter of approach as to where we start: go down the path of answering all possible questions or move forward based on everything we have already achieved. We have an unprecedented situation where Armenia and Azerbaijan have agreed on the text of the agreement, recognizing each other’s territorial integrity within the borders that existed at the time of the collapse of the USSR. This answers so many questions and concerns. What are we doing—are we moving forward based on this or are we going down the road of destroying this historical, tangible achievement and putting new questions on the table? In that case, the process will never end,” stated Mirzoyan.