“It was an excellent discussion. The representatives of all PACE political groups noted that the Lachin Corridor is closed, Azerbaijan did it and that it should open it, there is a humanitarian crisis” in a conversation with Aravot.am, evaluating the discussion on the Lachin Corridor during the PACE Plenary Session, his opinion expressed Ruben Rubinyan, head of the Armenian delegation to PACE. He assured us that nobody takes Azerbaijani denials seriously, which is essential.
According to Ruben Rubinyan, this is a part of international pressure. Referring to the PACE Bureau’s decision to prepare a report on this topic, Ruben Rubinyan said: “This means that it was not only a discussion but also a discussion with a certain result. We are promoting sending a PACE fact-finding team to the Lachin Corridor. It seems that it is receiving a positive response from international partners. PACE delegates mentioned this in most of their speeches. We continue to increase the pressure in this direction.”
Ruben Rubinyan responded to our statement that despite all this, the Lachin corridor remains closed. “We have something important to do in this situation. Increase the pressure on Azerbaijan with the mechanisms and tools available on all international platforms. I think it’s obvious, and you can see that pressure is increasing. If the corridor is not open now, it is not enough, and we must continue increasing the pressure.”
To the reminder that there were “attacks” on Ruben Vardanyan by members of the Azerbaijani delegation, and to the question, how would you rate this? Ruben Rubinyan answered: “These conversations have absolutely nothing to do with the closing of the Lachin Corridor. The goal is to blur the situation. But there is a fact: there is a statement of November 9, according to which the Lachin Corridor should remain under the control of the Russian peacekeeping troops, that is, the Russian peacekeepers should exercise control in that area, and Azerbaijan should guarantee the movement of people, goods, and vehicles. Now that clause is violated, and it cannot remain violated. Whatever the Azerbaijanis want to say, express whatever they want, the facts I mentioned are undeniable.”
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To our stating that even Azerbaijanis turned to you, saying, “Dear colleagues, Ruben Vardanyan wants to remove Nikol Pashinyan from his post: how to understand that,” Ruben Rubinyan noted, “It aims to blur the issue.” Ruben Rubinyan answered the question: “Has there been any communication with the Azerbaijani delegation?” “We say hello when we see each other in the corridors.” We mentioned that PACE deputies often say that the two countries should have a dialogue; Ruben Rubinyan said in this regard: “It used to be like that, but I wouldn’t say that there are many such calls this time. It is obvious to everyone that there is a problem, and the ball is in Azerbaijan’s cord to solve it.
One of the European partners said precisely: “Because they illegally blocked the Lachin Corridor, they should open it. There is no question of misunderstanding or strained relations here. There is a specific issue: the relevant clause of the November 9 statement has been violated, and Azerbaijan has blockaded Nagorno-Karabakh. If you have noticed, Azerbaijani arguments are often self-contradictory. On the one hand, they say there is no blockade; on the other hand, they start justifying why the so-called “activists” blocked the road.”
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
