Saturday, March 9 2024 12:08

ArmInfo.Yerevan and Baku managed to agree on many things, but there are key, very important issues on  which the positions of the parties are still far from each other. 

This was stated by Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan in an interview with the Turkish TV channel TRT World and touched upon the progress of the implementation of the Armenian-Turkish agreements.  Thus, when asked what Yerevan and Baku  have come to on the diplomatic front, Mirzoyan noted that the Armenia is discussing with the Azerbaijan not a ceasefire, but the process of achieving peace.

"We are negotiating a draft peace agreement, there are other  discussion platforms. Meetings were held at the level of heads of  states, negotiations were held between foreign ministers. We managed  to agree on many things, but there are key, very important issues on  which the positions of the parties are still far from each other. I  would like to mention some of the most important ones.

First of all, the first is the issue of ensuring territorial  integrity, recognition of borders and the further process of  delimitation. In 1991, the two countries signed and ratified a  document that recognized each other's territorial integrity and  borders. This is the Alma-Ata declaration. Without going into  details, this is a document by which the twelve republics of the USSR  recognized that, firstly, the USSR ceased to exist, and secondly, the  administrative borders between them were recognized as interstate,  international borders. 

Armenia and Azerbaijan were also among those republics. During the  last round of negotiations, the leaders of the two countries  reaffirmed their commitment to the Alma-Ata Declaration and its  principles, in particular, in 2022 in Prague, then in Sochi, Brussels  and on other occasions. Thus, the two countries confirmed that they  recognize each other's territorial integrity and agreed to carry out  a further delimitation process in accordance with the 1991 Alma-Ata  Declaration. Unfortunately, when we try to make reference to the  Alma-Ata Declaration in the peace treaty, stating exactly what I just  said, nothing more, we see reluctance from Azerbaijan to sign such a  document; they simply remove this part from the text. At least this  raises questions among Armenian diplomats, since there are concerns  that after the atrocities that hostilities in our region, after the  forced deportation of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh, their  homeland, Azerbaijan may have further plans to continue its ambitions  regarding the sovereign territory of Armenia. To avoid such a  scenario or misunderstanding, if it is a misunderstanding, Azerbaijan  can simply sign the text I mentioned and ratify it," he emphasized.

When asked which platforms Yerevan considers most suitable for  constructive discussions, Mirzoyan said:  all of them. "The only  problem or missing component, at least in my personal opinion, is the  lack of political will on the other side to conclude a peace  agreement," he noted.

Touching upon the prospects for Ankara's participation in the process  as a mediator, Ararat Mirzoyan noted that there have been such  attempts. However, he continued, "with all due respect, our response  was that for mediation efforts, and this applies not only to Turkiye,  but also to all other players, we must see that the positions and  intentions of the potential mediator are completely balanced,  completely neutral."  "It can be said, at least, there is an  impression that the positions of Azerbaijan and Turkiye are  identical, which usually does not create conditions for mediation.  Nevertheless, we expressed our views, and there is also a  constructive discussion on this issue," the Minister noted.