"Stepanakert should prepare for negotiations with Baku" - comment from Yerevan
Rally in Stepanakert and appeal to Putin
“Artsakh should immediately begin to restore its subjectivity, not make demands to Yerevan and not beg for help from the Russians,” the head of the “In the Name of the Republic” party, Arman Babajanyan, has declared at a rally of many thousands held on October 30 in Stepanakert (Khankendi).
Babajanyan also said: “Why didn’t the people of Artsakh [the unrecognized NKR] hold rallies or actions when the sovereign territory of Armenia was under attack and Armenia was at a critical stage in its existence?”
The rally was timed to coincide with the meeting of the Prime Minister of Armenia and the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Russia scheduled for October 31 in Sochi. The main message of the action was a call to the Armenian authorities “not to abandon the mission of ensuring the security” of their compatriots.
In parallel with the rally, a meeting was held in the parliament of the unrecognized NKR and a statement was adopted emphasizing that “Artsakh has never been and will never be part of independent Azerbaijan.” It is this principle, according to the statement, that should be the basis for any resolution of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict.
It also mentions “the historical role of Russia in ensuring peace and stability in the region”, and “the participation of Russian President V. Putin in ending the 44-day war.”
Most importantly, the deputies of parliament turned to Russia with a request to continue fulfilling their obligation to ensure the safety of the people living there and “introduce additional political and military measures.”
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Warning to Armenian authorities
The parliamentary statement mentions “serious concern” over “statements of powerful states regarding the prospects for a resolution of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict and the future of Artsakh” made in recent months. Thus, the deputies announced their position for Yerevan:
“The Armenian authorities have no right to abandon the mission to ensure the security of the people of NK or sign any document that questions the existence of the sovereign Republic of Artsakh, and our right to self-determination and its realization, since this does not reflect historical and legal realities.”
“Any attempt to forcibly annex Artsakh to Azerbaijan will be regarded as a gross violation of international law and official consent to commit a new genocide of the Armenian peopl; therefore, documents of such content are unacceptable to the Republic of Artsakh.”
The statement also says that the deputies are in favor of establishing peace, and support the signing of a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Rally in Stepanakert and appeal to Putin
Comment
Journalist Arman Babajanyan, head of the “In the Name of the Republic” party, writes on his Facebook page:
“The commander of the Russian peacekeeping troops in Artsakh, Major General Andrei Volkov, initiated and ordered the holding of a rally in Stepanakert. This means that if Armenia refuses the Russian version of a resolution, the peacekeeping mission will leave Artsakh.
I don’t know why, but the people of Artsakh didn’t hold any rallies or actions when the sovereign territory of Armenia under attack and Armenia was at a critical stage in its existence. I mean the events around Parukh this spring in the presence of Russian peacekeepers.
A twisted version of the situation in Parukh and the loss of the strategically important Karaglukh heights (in Azerbaijan – Dashbashi) was relayed to Armenian journalists by the former commander of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army Samvel Babayan. According to the latter, the Russian peacekeepers proposed to remove both Armenian and Azerbaijani positions from this territory in order to reduce tension, but the agreement was fulfilled only by Armenia. The Azerbaijani Armed Forces, taking advantage of the situation, advanced into these territories. The Russian peacekeepers offered no resistance. – JAMnews
The people of Artsakh mistakenly feel, or have been maliciously convinced, that they should not play any role in the resolution process.
Stepanakert should not make demands of Yerevan but should appeal to the international community, since Yerevan no longer represents Artsakh.
They should demand that the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs visit Stepanakert, not Yerevan.
Instead of endlessly hanging around the neck of the Russians, we should communicate intensively and work with international organizations and capitals of different countries.
At the same time, it is necessary to prepare with full responsibility for difficult negotiations with Baku using international mechanisms and guarantees.
This is perhaps a long, difficult path, but the only way to save Artsakh and keep Artsakh Armenian.
Like it or not, Russian peacekeeping is a temporary presence in Artsakh. Moreover, today the effectiveness of the Russian peacekeeping presence is in doubt, and it is necessary to think about the introduction of long-term international security mechanisms.
No matter how difficult it may be, one must understand that purely Armenian-Russian relations have not existed for a long time. Ankara and Baku have long been present in the Armenian-Russian relations, and we cannot ignore this.”
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Rally in Stepanakert and appeal to Putin
