Monday, February 25 2019 15:04

ArmInfo. Editor of the Azerbaijani Turan news agency Shahin Hajiyev, who recently returned from Armenia, summed up his visit to Armenia, expressing his  assumptions about the attitude of the Armenian population to the  Nagorno-Karabakh settlement in an interview with BBC News  Az?rbaycanca.

Thus, Hajiyev believes that the population of Armenia in the Karabakh  issue adheres to the position of the state and does not intend to  make any concessions. He also informed that he had been in Armenia  for the last time about 20 years ago and is confident that the  situation has changed dramatically since then. "The population of  Armenia has little interest in politics. If the conversation is about  conflict, then they accept the state's position on this issue:"  Karabakh is ours and we will not return it to anyone. "20 years ago  the situation was completely different.  Then the conflict only  ended; there were some excitements and expectations. Now the new  generation in Armenia believes that everything has already been  determined, people like in another world. Another change is related  to the fact that the society does not want to discuss peaceful ways  to resolve the conflict, as it was 20 years ago. . They believe that  Armenia will not make concessions and should not go to them.  Armenians believe that this is a resolved issue and Azerbaijan will  not be able to change anything, " Hajiyev said.

He also found it difficult to draw parallels between the societies of  the two countries, noting that in Armenia they consider themselves  victorious in this war, while Azerbaijan, in this war, lost territory  and considers the Armenian side to be the aggressor. Hajiyev is  convinced that radicalism is manifested in this issue in Armenian  society. "For example, after I returned from Armenia, over 20  journalists approached me and wanted to interview. One of them wrote  to me:" We read what you wrote and were very surprised. "He said he  was surprised that it is possible to speak with Azerbaijani in a  human way. The authorities speak diplomatically enough, they either  didn't have a radical position or they didn't voice it, but their  position on the Karabakh issue is also principled. That what I say  refers to members of the public. Ordinary people believe that  concessions in the Karabakh issue are out of the question. A few  months ago, the former US Ambassador, completing his diplomatic  mission in Armenia, expressed surprise at the categorical position of  the Armenian society: "They don't want to liberate the areas around  Karabakh even in return for their independence." Ambassador's this  statement caused a scandal in Armenia: "Like, look what America  offers us." This is what radicalism is. If someone voices a different  opinion, he is immediately denounced as a traitor. One of my  interlocutors said that compromise on both sides is needed to resolve  the conflict. So he was called a traitor and forced to clarify his  words, " Hajiyev said.

Responding to a question about the possibilities of preparing peoples  for peace, as stated earlier, Hajiyev expressed his conviction that  this would be extremely difficult to do, since the parties do not  have trust in each other. The Turan editor also believes that the  civil society on which this mission is entrusted is in a deplorable  state. "The slogans do not build trust. There should be communication  between the parties, people should meet and discuss the problem. If  they see only propaganda, then what kind of peace preparation can we  talk about? If there was a solution, the negotiations would not last  25-30 years. We are at an impasse, " Hajiyev said.