At the press conference the Armenian leader spoke about the details of the agreements reached earlier in Brussels through the mediation of EU Council President Charles Michel. Specifically, Pashinyan said that Armenia is willing to recognize the borders of Azerbaijan and its territory of 86,600 square kilometers. He also clarified that these borders include the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region and Armenian-occupied enclaves.
Pashinyan said that the conditions for the official recognition of the former Nagorno-Karabakh region as a part of Azerbaijan include ensuring security of the Armenians residing in the territories under the control of the Russian peacekeeping forces. Provided that this condition is met, the Armenian PM said it would be possible to sign a peace treaty with Azerbaijan at the EU-brokered meeting in Chisinau on June 1. In conclusion, Pashinyan said that the negotiations were progressing intensively.
Pashinyan was immediately showered with threats
These statements by Nikol Pashinyan were followed by attacks on him by Russian media and the Karabakh separatists.
An article published in Moskovsky Komsomolets says that the sensational statement of the Armenian Prime Minister may put an end to his political future.
“The Armenian Prime Minister believes that negotiations with Baku may eventually lead to a peace agreement and the formulation of a text of a peace treaty, where all the details of concern to both sides would be stipulated. However, this unexpected stance just before the talks may look like a kind of capitulation by Yerevan. The Armenian public, already rather critical of the government’s policy, may be split by the defeatist decision of the authorities,” says the Russian newspaper.
At the time Pashinyan was making these statements, the security of the government building was tightened and special police forces were deployed. Hrant Mikayelyan, Armenian political scientist and researcher at the Caucasus Institute in Yerevan, commented on this in a conversation with MK.
“Seeing as the police forces in the capital city were engaged to protect the government building, the authorities are aware of all the risks. At the same time, we see the weak position of the Armenian opposition, which is unable to mobilize people and has no external support.”
Pashinyan is also threatened by the “Russian project” by the name of Vardanyan
The political scientist also pointed out that the effects of this decision for Pashinyan cannot be predicted only in the short term.
“I can say that in the long run it will definitely cost him power and, most likely, his freedom. This will have most negative consequences for Pashinyan. But this is a long-term forecast,” the expert said.
According to him, the Armenian authorities “are not currently under strong political pressure.” Meanwhile, Pashinyan made another fateful statement, saying that Armenia may withdraw from the CSTO. This is not the first time the Armenian PM has harshly criticized the organization, which, in his opinion, is not sufficient to ensure Armenia’s security.
“I would view this in the overall context of attempts to push Russia out of the Caucasus,” concluded Mikayelyan. “The Russian peacekeepers maintain their presence for now. If they are removed, Nagorno-Karabakh will most likely be permanently recognized as part of Azerbaijan.”
Another “Russian” threat to Pashinyan came from Karabakh. Before the press conference, Ruben Vardanyan, a Russian billionaire of Armenian origin who is trying to take control of the separatist regime by creating a kind of “front” to “save Karabakh,” recorded a video message to Pashinyan. The recording was made in the village of Kolatag, Aghdara District, in front of an ancient Albanian temple known as “Hakopavank Church”.
“I am speaking from Hakopavank in the heart of Karabakh,” Vardanyan said. “I don’t know, Mr. Pashinyan, how long you will remain the leader, but I am telling you: you are doing something dangerous. You are not trying to protect the Armenian state, your power, but you are trying to turn us into slaves and people of no value. You will not succeed. We feel that what is happening around us cannot last long, because it contradicts the most fundamental human values.”
Simonyan, talking about the fate of the Karabakh Armenians, mentioned donkeys
Margarita Simonyan, head of the Russia Today media group and one of the Kremlin’s main propagandists, also attacked Pashinyan. She posted a message in her Telegram channel, saying that Pashinyan is a “traitor” and that “he was brought to power in order to return Karabakh to Azerbaijan.”
“And you, those who licked his fur, voted for him, ran after him in the squares, sent me tons of insults and threats, called me a Turkish earthworm… You, who wouldn’t listen to anything, who wouldn’t see the obvious and followed your leader right down the path of the betrayal of the Armenian people, you, go to the mirror right now, spit in your faces and accept that for the rest of your life you will live with the knowledge that you were Karabakh donkeys. And you are still donkeys. Only no longer donkeys of Karabakh now,” Simonyan wrote.
