ArmInfo. The statement by Richard Mills on Karabakh is a statement by the leaving Ambassador. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said this in a conversation with journalists, commenting on the words of US Ambassador to RA Richard Mills on the need to "return the occupied territories."
"We have repeatedly expressed our position on the Karabakh settlement, and I don't think that it has undergone changes," Pashinyan assured. The other day, Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan in Luxembourg stated that the status of Nagorno-Karabakh and its security are priorities for Armenia. "Karabakh is a party to the conflict, with a decisive voice in the settlement process, and should have a more direct involvement," he said.
To recall, US Ambassador Richard Mills who is terminating his diplomatic mission in Armenia, in an interview with EVN, speaking of the Karabakh settlement, made remarkable statements. In particular, referring to ways to resolve the conflict, he emphasized the need to return the "occupied territories": "The settlement of the conflict is impossible without the return of a certain part of the occupied territories. The issue of the return of the occupied territories is one of the fundamental points of the Madrid principles. When I arrived in Armenia, found that most Armenians are categorically against the return of the occupied territories. It seems to me that we are taking a step back. My government for many years considered that these territories were originally taken, to later be used as part of the formula of "land - for peace," and I was very surprised when I discovered that this formula does not find public support in Armenia ", the diplomat said. He also stressed that the April war of 2016 consolidated this position of the Armenians even more. "Now it will be much more difficult to resolve this issue, but the harsh reality is that any settlement requires the return of a certain part of the occupied territories," the diplomat said. At the same time, he stressed that the status quo no longer proceeds from the interests of Armenia, since in the context of closed borders and limited human and material resources, corruption risks increase. "Corruption is not born and thrives, because people are bad, but because there are appropriate conditions for this," the diplomat said.