Here is a portion of an interview with the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, Edward Nalbandyan.
– Mr. Nalbanyan, what do you have to say about Nikol Pashinyan’s announcement? What was he alluding to?
– A few weeks ago, when I commented on another announcement that during negotiations for Nagorno-Karabakh, the topic of giving away lands was discussed and agreed upon, I said that that does not correspond to reality whatsoever and that it’s empty, absurd, and misleading.
I will repeat myself. The main component of the negotiation process over the past several years was that Artsakh’s situation needs to be decided upon by the people of Nagorno-Karabakh through a referendum that has power on an international level. Everything else is derived from that.
Armenia has stated that over the past few years, whether it was during the negotiation process or through an official announcement. We also emphasized that, without Artsakh’s participation, it will be impossible to come up with a total and long-lasting solution.
The presidents also share this point of view, and the proof is that it’s written in all working documents of the negotiation process. Conceptual changes have taken place during the process of coming up with a solution to the Karabakh conflict. Our positions have been emphasized.
If Azerbaijan demanded throughout the years that solving the Karabakh conflict needs to be done solely on the basis of territorial integrity, then we have reached a place, and the international community also says this, where solving the conflict between Karabakh and Azerbaijan needs to be based on three principles: no threat of force, territorial integrity, and the people’s decision. Those principles are being discussed as one whole. Attempting to give one of the principles precedence will only fail in the process of finding a peaceful resolution.
Razmik Martirosyan