Armenia`s Security Council Secretary: EUMA`s presence in Armenia  aligns with the relationship between Yerevan and Brussels

ArmInfo. Armenia is ready to sign a peace treaty with Azerbaijan in the shortest possible time and has already proposed to sign the agreed points. Armen Grigoryan, the Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia, stated this in an interview with Factor, when asked if negotiations with Baku have reached a standstill, especially considering Azerbaijan's ongoing demands to change the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia. 

"We believe that we are addressing some of the existing problems by  signing the agreed points. The remaining issues we will discuss in  future stages. That is, the peace treaty should also be considered as  part of the process. At the moment, we are resolving some problems,  and any unresolved issues we will address in the next stage through  negotiations. Armenia is ready to conclude a peace treaty promptly,  and is committed to actively participating in finalizing the peace  treaty at the highest level and sign it as soon as possible,"  Grigoryan said. 

When asked about Armenia's decision to discuss amending the  Constitution in 2027, the official emphasized that this issue is part  of the country's domestic political agenda and cannot be the subject  of any discussions by external forces. "The matter of the  Constitution, and in general the issue of amending the Constitution,  is an internal affair of Armenia that has been on our agenda since  2020. The Prime Minister of Armenia has stated this publicly.  Constitutional amendments are a domestic issues for Armenia, and the  country will determine the timing based on its internal affairs," the  Secretary of the Security Council added.

 When asked if the President of Azerbaijan's accusations of   "revanchist ideas" against the Armenian authorities, their conduct of  intensive military exercises and armament, and their presentation of  a number of other demands to Armenia indicate that Baku's ultimate  goal is war, not peace, Grigoryan agreed that the military budget of  the Republic of Azerbaijan has consistently been much larger than the  Armenia's for years. "In the context of armament, Azerbaijan is  arming itself more intensively. It's important to note that Armenia  only acquires defensive weapons - to protect its territorial  integrity. And these weapons are not intended for any other purposes.  We have also proposed to Azerbaijan to create a mechanism for mutual  arms control. In addition, we firmly believe that the peace agreement  creates long-term guarantees of long- term stability between the two  countries. We believe that the signing of a peace treaty, a mechanism  for mutual arms control, which we proposed to the Azerbaijani side,  will make it possible to alleviate all fears," the official added. 

According to him, there is a fundamental expert analysis that the  government of Azerbaijan needs to maintain the conflict and a hostile  atmosphere with Armenia, not sign an agreement, arm, and provoke  border clashes. Grigoryan once again pointed out Armenia's motivation  to sign a peace treaty as soon as possible, and added that a number  of international partners support this desire of the Republic of  Armenia.

When asked if Armenia is ready to defend its territory in the event  of a large-scale military attack by Azerbaijan, the official said  that Armenia will do everything necessary to defend itself in the  event of any attack. In this regard, he reiterated that Yerevan is  acquiring solely defensive weapons and continues to enhance its  capabilities to be prepared for various scenarios in order to protect  its territorial integrity.  Speaking about the EU Monitoring Mission  in Armenia (EUMA), the official stressed that they are carrying out  their mission properly and ensuring transparency in the region by  monitoring the situation on the ground. Grigoryan noted that the  Armenian authorities highly value the EU mission and believe it  should continue to remain as long as necessary. In response to the  remark that Russia and Azerbaijan accuse the EU mission of spying on  Moscow, Baku and Tehran, and the question of  Iran's perspective on  this matter, and whether this is an attempt to remove a neutral  mediator to simplify its tasks in future attacks, the Secretary of  the Security Council of Armenia stated that the presence of EUMA  aligns with the relationship between Yerevan and Brussels.

 "Of course, the mission is also about regional stability, but it is  also about bilateral relations. We discuss these issues at bilateral  platforms. Regarding Iran, we work transparently with the Iranian  side on all cooperation issues. I believe that Tehran understands  Armenia's steps, if possible, in general has information about the  goals of the mission," Grigoryan said, without finishing his thought,  as this part of his answer was edited.