Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan issued a message on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Karabakh movement. The message reads, in particular:
“35 years ago, these days, the Karabakh movement began. The spontaneous and mass protests that started on 20 February 1988 will remain in Armenian history as a symbol of national awakening, unity and liberation struggle.
The movement was the first step in the restoration of our statehood, through which we rediscovered our determination to live free and independent, to shape our destiny and to govern our future.
The Karabakh movement was about the right and will of the people of Artsakh to express their rights and to live a dignified life on their own land.
35 years later, the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh still face the most serious challenges. Today, too, our compatriots, being under blockade, are forced to express their will to protect their rights and security. As I have repeatedly noted, Azerbaijan’s actions have one goal: to break the will of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh to live in their own Homeland, which, however, I am convinced, is unbreakable and unwavering.
Dear compatriots,
We continue to multiply our efforts to focus international attention on the humanitarian crisis that has erupted in Nagorno-Karabakh, since only the unabated activity of the international community is the way to restrain Azerbaijan’s aggressiveness and provocative conduct, to fully implement the commitments undertaken by the trilateral statement of 9 November 2020, and to unblock the Lachin corridor.
At the same time, we shall continue our consistent steps aimed at solving the socio-economic problems of the Armenians of Artsakh, overcoming security challenges, and forming mechanisms for the protection of the rights and security of the Armenians of Artsakh. The realisation of these goals requires unreserved work, and in that work we must be unwavering.
Dear people of Artsakh,
Be strong and unbreakable, for the sake of living and creating peacefully and securely in the homeland. In the face of new global and regional challenges, we must concentrate our forces on the implementation of the peace agenda, however much we understand the difficulties and problems awaiting us on that path. In the final analysis, a peaceful, dignified and secure life has been the substantive goal of the Karabakh movement, and we shall move toward that goal.”
