“For example, the Russian-controlled road or the unblocking of the railway through the sovereign territory of Armenia in Meghri will put us in a weaker position because if we cede control to a third entity, an ally, then in this case Azerbaijan will not talk to us. Instead, they will talk to those who control the road,” political scientist Emil Ordukhanyan said during the discussion on “Corridor or road?
What should be the position of Armenia? 3 + 3 vs 3 + 2 vs 5 + 3” organized by the newly established think tank Armenian Center for Democracy and Security. According to him, our capacity is also endangered in terms of relations with Iran and India. Those countries will prefer to talk to the entity that will control the road. Under these conditions, we will turn from a factor into an instrument.
The political scientist stated that the goal of Turkey and Azerbaijan is to get that format, the corridor, which will allow them to implement their goals. The political scientist clarified why the Republic of Armenia should not allow that format to become a reality. “First, it was announced at various levels that there would be no corridor, but the content of that term, what we understand, has not been clearly explained yet. It is clear that the corridor assumes an area under the control of other entities outside the influence of the Republic of Armenia. Therefore, the corridor and the road are not complementary options, but different from one another. If there is a corridor, it means a road. We need to address the issue of the status of that channel.”
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Referring to the approaches when parallels are drawn between the Berdzor or Lachin corridor and Meghri, the political scientist said, “It is not politically correct to make comparisons because in the case of Lachin, we have nothing to do with the territory of an internationally recognized entity, unlike Meghri, which is the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia. Therefore, the approach that the Russians are stationed in Lachin and can in Meghri is not true. This is the weight of Armenia. If we give that control to other entities, we will lose our weight, and our geography will work against us.”
Emil Ordukhanyan is against the demarcation and delimitation works being mediated by Russia. He mentioned as a confirmation that Russia has not yet fulfilled its mission on the issue of Armenian prisoners of war, just as it does not fully fulfill its peacekeeping mission, as the incidents do not stop. “The demarcation of the border with the mediation of Russia does not guarantee that it will be by the same logic as what happens in the framework of the return of prisoners of war and peacekeeping missions.”
He also considers the approach when they say unblocking to focus only on the corridor. He explained, “Unblocking also means opening up other avenues. It is not just the focus on the corridor. If there is a blockade of the roads, the roads passing through Azerbaijan will be under the control of Azerbaijan, then why should the roads passing through Armenia be controlled by the Russians? We will already be in an unequal position here.”
Tatev Harutyunyan
