Michael Roth: Your government has taken a courageous step by making concessions to neighboring  Azerbaijan in order to protect and ensure security of the people

ArmInfo.Unfortunately, world history has numerous examples of authoritarian rule, but  we consider Armenia as a democratic country that has taken the path of deepening democracy and wants to  become part of the modern world. I believe that your government has taken a courageous step in making  concessions to neighboring Azerbaijan in order to protect and ensure the security of the Armenian people  who want to live freely and independently in their country. Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee  of the Bundestag Michael Roth, who arrived in Yerevan within the framework of a regional visit, expressed  such an opinion speaking at a briefing with journalists.

According to him, such a policy of the Armenian government could create ground for concern and  discontent, and the German side understands and accepts this concern.

, the  Bundestag MP noted. According to him, being in this difficult region, Armenia acts as a friend of Germany  and a democratic country that respects and protects European values.

As Roth noted, it is for this reason that the Federal Chancellor of Germany is also involved in the process  of ensuring peace in the region, along with the efforts of the French and American sides, and Germany, like  its partners, has one desire - to ensure lasting peace and freedom for Armenia and its citizens. "For this  reason, I call on Azerbaijan and the responsible politicians of this country to respect the decision of the  International Court of Justice and open the Lachin corridor without delay," the German MP said.

Michael Roth said that in the morning he had meetings with women from Nagorno-Karabakh, who  represent various organizations and who expressed their concern about the facts of violence against women.  "The fact that family members are separated for a long time is nothing but a gross violation of human  rights," he said. According to him, the security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh should be ensured  in the long term and Germany will not allow Azerbaijan to carry out ethnic cleansing in Nagorno- Karabakh. .

"We also hope that within the framework of peace negotiations, Azerbaijan will go for the immediate  release of Armenian prisoners of war. And so that as a result of the delimitation of the border, the territorial  integrity of Armenia will be recognized>, the MP said. The MP thanked the Armenian government for  inviting the EU civilian observation mission to the country.> We are glad to say that the mission will  further expand its activities and are full of hope that the Azerbaijani side will also give its consent to  hosting such a mission on its side>, Roth said , specifying that it is not only about increasing the number of  observers, but also about expanding the geography of monitoring in three more directions of the border.  Speaking about the possibility of establishing a similar mission in Azerbaijan, the head of the Bundestag  committee noted that negotiations with Azerbaijan on this topic are still ongoing. "Although we have not  received any signs from the Azerbaijani side, we believe that the issue of ensuring peace and stability is  also the task of Azerbaijan and it should become a participant in the process of ensuring regional peace and  stability," the MP noted.

Commenting on the statements of Russian politicians that the European monitoring mission in Armenia is  designed to squeeze Russia out of the region, Michael Roth noted that "the Russia's Putin regime has  already abandoned Armenia, and the Russian foreign minister continues to pursue his imperialist foreign  policy, spreading Kremlin propaganda." , said the Bundestag MP.

Citing Russia as an example, which should ensure the territorial integrity of Ukraine and resolve issues  through negotiations, in this region, according to Roth, there is no alternative to the negotiation process.  And the process of recognizing territorial integrity should not be limited to words and should be achieved  in practice.

As Michael Roth stressed, Armenia is a European country, and if it expresses a desire to become a member  of the EU, then "we will have to take firm steps to help the country pass this path. It should be the free  choice of Armenia, because we consider Armenia a European country>. As the MP noted, Germany wants  to strengthen both political and economic relations with Armenia, and in this context considers it important  to promote the process of liberalization of the EU visa regime with Armenia.