The government’s session today, August 4, began with a minute of silence in memory of the 2 servicemen of the Artsakh Defense Army who were killed. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan noted in his remarks that in recent days the situation in and around Artsakh has been extremely tense, and as a result of the fighting, 19 servicemen of the Artsakh Defense Army have been wounded and 2 have been killed. The Prime Minister wished the wounded servicemen a speedy recovery and noted that a number of events that took place these days and before have brought to light a number of systemic issues.
“I have said many times that the presence and activity of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Artsakh is a key factor in ensuring the security of the Armenians of Artsakh, and we highly appreciate Russia’s efforts in ensuring security in our region. Since November 9, 2020, a number of events in Artsakh, including the events of recent days, have raised questions among the Armenian public regarding the content and essence of the peacekeeping operation in Artsakh. The seizure of the villages of Khtsaberd and Hin Tagher by Azerbaijan on December 11, 2020, and the capture of Armenian servicemen, with the presence and connivance of Russian peacekeepers, the seizure of the village of Parukh in Artsakh on March 24, 2022, again with the presence of Russian peacekeepers, the continuous and escalating violations of the ceasefire regime along the line of contact, and the cases of physically and psychologically terrorizing the Armenians of Artsakh with the presence of peacekeepers are simply unacceptable. In this context, clarification of the details of the peacekeeping operation in Artsakh is becoming urgently necessary. This has been necessary from the very beginning, along with the deployment of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Artsakh. But it must be admitted that Azerbaijan has hindered this process by refusing to sign the mandate for the activities of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Artsakh, while Armenia did so back in November 2020, and we expect that this mandate, signed in a bilateral format, will operate in its full scope. In addition, there are a number of institutional (systemic) issues related to the topic. In particular, point 3 of the November 9, 2020 trilateral statement clearly states that there is a line of contact in Artsakh, along which the Russian peacekeeping forces are deployed. It is precisely this area that is called the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Artsakh. And we expect that any attempt to cross the line of contact will be stopped by the Russian peacekeeping contingent, and Azerbaijani units located inside the line of contact will be withdrawn.”
“Returning to the topic of the mandate of the Russian peacekeeping contingent in Artsakh, I must repeat that, in our opinion, the signatures of Armenia and Russia are sufficient to fully implement that mandate. And if not, then it is necessary to take measures to internationally confirm that mandate or to endow the peacekeepers with a broader international mandate. I do not want to open up too many working details now, but these issues have concerned us since November 2020, we have made efforts to reach concrete solutions, and now these efforts must be doubled or tripled.”
The Prime Minister then emphasized that no matter how much the November 9 statement is criticized, it enshrines important provisions for the security of Artsakh. First, the recording of the unity of Nagorno-Karabakh took place, which Azerbaijan is still trying to deny by saying that Artsakh does not exist. Such statements coming from Azerbaijan are, by the way, the crudest violation of the trilateral statement. Second, it is recorded that a line of contact exists, and third, the Lachin corridor, which ensures the connection of Artsakh with Armenia. In essence, Azerbaijan’s current struggle is against these three provisions, and our expectation is that, as provided for by the trilateral statement, the Russian peacekeeping contingent will not give Azerbaijan the opportunity to undermine these fundamental provisions recorded by the trilateral statement.
“Azerbaijan today constantly talks about the Artsakh Defense Army, asking why they are deployed along the line of contact. If the Russian peacekeeping contingent and Azerbaijan guarantee the inviolability of the line of contact, then the Artsakh Defense Army, I believe, will have no need to carry out combat duty. Such a need arose only after Azerbaijan refused to sign the peacekeepers’ mandate and continuously violates the provisions of the November 9, 2020 trilateral statement, including the cessation of all military operations, which is the very essence of the aforementioned document,” Pashinyan said.
The Prime Minister’s full speech, with video:
