Sargsyan: Position of Armenia on key issues of Karabakh settlement has not changed after April war
ArmInfo.The position of Armenia on the key issues of Nagorno- Karabakh settlement after the "four-day April war" has not changed. This was stated in the interview to the "R-evolution" program by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan. "There is no new approach. I am sure that Azerbaijan's position has not changed.
April war demonstrated that the Azerbaijani side refuses Madrid version of the conflict settlement. I do not intend to change the positions in the settlement of the issue, at least from the Armenian side. As for concessions, at least for the p0revious 20 years we, somewhere, somehow did not talk about concessions. We have always said, and now we continue to talk about resolving the conflict through mutual concessions. These are different things. I am convinced that even if this conflict has not been resolved for another 20 years, Armenian side will never have a desire to make concessions to changesituation. This is a ruinous path that cannot solve the problem, "Sargsyan said.
At the same time, he noted that he does not see any changes in his positions, since the desire and goal of Armenian side are obvious - the realization of the right of people of Nagorno-Karabakh recognized by the international community to self-determination, the existence of a land border with Armenia, and reliable guarantees for the security of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. "Here are three principled positions that we have been talking about for 20 years. The position of Azerbaijan is also understandable and lies in the fact that Nagorno-Karabakh problem is an internal matter of the country, that Karabakh was part of Azerbaijan and must remain so. That is, whatever approaches sounded during the talks, the Armenian side seeks its goal, Azerbaijani side seeks to achieve its goal. That's the whole problem. As the saying goes, the bear knows seven songs and they are all about honey, "the Armenian leader said. At the same time he added that Yerevan constantly proposes different ways and options for the negotiations at the talks, but the main principles do not change from this.
Referring to the participation of Nagorno-Karabakh in the negotiation process, Sargsyan noted that Azerbaijan rejects this proposal. "But in all options, well, at least to which I know, Nagorno-Karabakh directly participates in the formation of the final document, that is, after obtaining the principle consent on Madrid principle, then Nagorno-Karabakh joins the talks. That is, joining of Karabakh to the fundamental documents is compulsory, "the Armenian leader said.
Commenting on his own words that the Armenian side is fighting in Karabakh with weapons of the 80s, the head of state stressed that weapons are periodically being updated, both before and after the April events. "Any military action is a lesson that you need to learn and draw conclusions, then you can find out what and how your adversary is using, and try to find an antidote to it. :Yes, then we did not have some types of weapons, which Azerbaijan managed to purchase. But is it a secret that Azerbaijan is richer than us and spends more money on arms purchases? It's not a secret. If someone says that Armenia will be able to become richer in two or three years than Azerbaijan, such a person will have to be driven out of politics, as this is charlatanry, a lie. This requires a lot of time " the head of state said. At the same time, Sargsyan stressed that Armenian side has sufficient armament to neutralize the threat threatening Armenia and Karabakh with the use of combat-ready armed forces. "The war is won not only by weapons, the main characters - soldiers, officers, commanders. They should have not the most modern, but sufficient weapons to solve the problem. Today we have it, "the Armenian leader said.