ArmInfo. Artsakh President Samvel Shahramanyan condemned the recent statements by the Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Alen Simonyan, who said that "if the people of Artsakh wanted a homeland, they would fight for it."
As reported by the Artsakh Information Headquarters, in a statement released today, the President of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic demanded that Simonyan publicly apologize to the forcibly displaced people of Nagorno-Karabakh and called on him to refrain from making assessments that cast doubt on the struggle of the people of Artsakh for their homeland.
In addition, Shahramanyan demanded that Simonyan tell who from Artsakh asked to open the so-called border.
"With this statement, Simonyan tried to belittle the heroic struggle of the people of Artsakh in the conditions of more than nine months of blockade and large-scale military actions that began after that," Shahramanyan noted.
The President emphasized that the people of Artsakh did everything possible to preserve life in their historical homeland. In this regard, he recalled that the struggle is being waged not only on the battlefield, but also in the political and diplomatic arenas.
"The struggle is being waged not only on the battlefield, but also on the political and diplomatic fronts, where Simonyan is also present. At different times, he has changed his views and position on the most important issues concerning Artsakh and Armenia, depending on political expediency," the President of Artsakh emphasized.
In addition, Shahramanyan called for using the rostrum of the National Assembly to solve the existential problems of the Armenians of Artsakh. He proposed to direct efforts to revising the failed housing program and creating conditions for the people of Artsakh to remain in their home country.
"The Artsakh authorities have done everything possible to ensure that the servicemen defending the Motherland do not feel lonely and can safely leave their positions or the blockade after the cessation of hostilities," Shahramanyan summarized.
Earlier, when asked by a journalist from Artsakh about when she would be able to return to her homeland, the Speaker of the Armenian Parliament Alen Simonyan said that the people of Artsakh "left their homes themselves, although they could have stayed and fought to the end." He stated that the return would be possible only if security was ensured, which would be achieved after the conclusion of a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan. In addition, he stated that the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh had the opportunity to fight with the weapons that were at their disposal.
According to official data from the Artsakh Defense Army, 265 sons of the Armenian people laid down their lives for the Motherland while repelling the enemy attack on September 19-20, 2023.
At the same time, in this unequal battle, according to official data, the enemy lost 205 people, more than 500 people were wounded. At the same time, according to unofficial data, over 1,000 enemy soldiers died in this battle.
According to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, it is Armenia that is the guarantor of Artsakh's security. However, on September 19-20, 2023, when Azerbaijan initiated another act of aggression against Artsakh, after a 10-month total blockade of the Republics, the Armenian authorities did not take any action to assist the Artsakh authorities, leaving Nagorno-Karabakh alone with the enemy.