Pashinyan Reflects on the Causes of the 44-Day War and S. Sargsyan's Statements

According to Nikol Pashinyan, the Prime Minister of Armenia, it was necessary for the Armenian side's perception of legitimacy regarding the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue to coincide with international legitimacy to prevent the 44-day war. However, he noted that this was practically impossible.

The Prime Minister pointed out that since the early 1990s, the Armenian and international perspectives on the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue had diverged, creating a deep rift. He stated that reconciling these perspectives might have been theoretically possible, but in practice, it was not, as the first step would have to be accepting that Nagorno-Karabakh should be part of Azerbaijan, and no other option existed.

“If we think we could have done this in 2018-2019, then yes, it is my mistake that I did not do it,” Pashinyan said.

In a post on his Facebook page, he mentioned that S.S. had once again spoken about the negotiating documents. “Don’t be upset; I have organized the key documents of the negotiation history (including 2019), we are scanning them now, and I will publish them by the end of the year, also including several public documents,” Pashinyan wrote.

He added that he would also include a letter written by S.S., “so you don’t think I consider it irrelevant,” and mentioned that the TPL and KR would also be informed.

Pashinyan quoted a part of S.S.'s statement made at the National Assembly podium on April 17, 2018, when S.S., as the candidate for Prime Minister, emphasized the high likelihood that Azerbaijan would seek to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh issue through war.

The PM referenced S.S.'s words from that day: “The next lesson is that for a very long time, we must pay the utmost attention to the reform of our armed forces, the acquisition of new weapons, the production of our own armaments, and most importantly, to always maintain the spirit of the Armenian soldier and officer high and to resolve their daily life issues, strengthening their confidence in any circumstances.”

Pashinyan raised the question of whether, if at least some of the criticisms of the army after 2020 were true, S.S. would have expressed something different in 2018. He argues that the reason for not saying so in 2018 was that “at that time you had a system for pulling gas and fuel from Baku through a hose and not an army.”

Pashinyan noted that if there were no debates, he would show the arms and equipment acquisitions of the army in recent years, the engineering works carried out, and the salaries of the soldiers while warning that “you will only wear the toughest masks so that you won’t suddenly fall.”

He mentioned that initially, he thought citizens might feel upset at the idea that he would offer TPL, KR, and S.S. the opportunity to showcase the acquisitions but not the citizens, and accepted that this was unfair.

Therefore, Pashinyan announced that any group of 50 Armenian citizens who agree to maintain confidentiality would have the opportunity to see the arms and equipment acquired in recent years and hear about engineering innovations.

The procedure to participate in the exhibition involves:
1. Compiling a list of citizens who wish to participate, with passport details, and sending it to [email protected].
2. Indicating a responsible person for the group who will coordinate organizational matters.
3. The date of the exhibition will be determined by a representative of the Government.

Pashinyan noted that the exhibition would be organized within a month after compiling the appropriate list and sending it to the specified email address.