ArmInfo.Vice Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Lena Nazaryan at the meeting with the delegation of French parliamentarians expressed gratitude to the latter for the support provided to the Armenian people in this difficult moment, and for the fact that they dared to call things by their proper names.
As reported by the press service of the RA Parliament, after describing in detail the situation resulting from the military aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan against the Republic of Artsakh, Nazaryan stressed that the target of the attacks of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces are also the civilian population, against whom prohibited weapons are used. She also spoke about the atrocities of the enemy and the inhuman treatment of Armenian prisoners of war.
"We are fighting not for territory, but for our existence, against which Azerbaijan opposes, and its supporter Turkey, brought mercenaries from Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Libya to the region. Today, clear steps are required by the international community to realize the right of the people of Artsakh to life. We are ready for a compromise if the right of the Armenians of Artsakh to self-determination is recognized through the recognition of the Republic of Artsakh. Azerbaijan, not wanting to discuss this issue, failed the negotiations, dragging us into the war. The international community should not be content with simple appeals; they cannot stop the atrocities committed by our adversary. The Artsakh Republic must be recognized for the sake of saving the Armenians. We cannot allow a repetition of 1915, "the vice speaker emphasized. In turn, the French MP of Armenian descent Guillaume Kasparian noted that the members of the delegation want to familiarize themselves with the situation in Armenia and Artsakh in order to inform France and Europe about it. Touching upon the issue of recognizing the independence of Artsakh, Kasparyan noted that some MPs have already signed a draft statement on the recognition of Artsakh. But, according to him, such a discussion will not end in a few days, given the workload of the parliament's agenda. Pointing to the need to end the war, the French deputies inquired about what decisions are needed to get out of this bloody slaughter and save the people of Armenia and Artsakh.
In their speeches, the deputies of the Armenian parliament noted the need for a ceasefire, spoke about the facts of violation of the humanitarian ceasefire and the continuation of hostilities by Azerbaijan. It was noted that only after the cease-fire it will be possible to resume negotiations, for which the Armenian side is always ready. "It is impossible to negotiate when people are deprived of the right to life," the deputies stressed. The Armenian parliamentarians called on their French colleagues, as members of the parliament of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair country, to make efforts to prevent the Azerbaijani-Turkish aggression, as well as to recognize the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination, considering it uncontested. Deputies from France considered the use of drones by Azerbaijan against the people of Artsakh unacceptable, and also asked if international recognition of Artsakh's independence would lead to a worsening of the situation. The Armenian deputies assured that the recognition of Artsakh will have exceptional positive consequences. The Armenian side explained that the problem of Artsakh is a question of the right to life, not a territorial dispute, and today it is necessary to take measures to end the war and the atrocities of the enemy. The question was raised about the possibility of resolving the issue within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. The NA MPs noted that this Azerbaijani-Turkish aggression is also aimed at changing the format of the Minsk Group, which is absolutely unacceptable for the Armenian side. <The goal of the terrorists is to intimidate us all. Today we are dealing with terrorists, and today no one is afraid of terrorists here. And so we will go to Artsakh, stay in Artsakh, we will live in Artsakh>, - concluded the head of the Armenia-France friendship group Vladimir Vardanyan.