Pashinyan & Mirzoyan at odds: Armenia continues to engage in duplicity

3 October 2024 19:45 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova

Despite significant progress in the Azerbaijan-Armenia peace negotiations up until May of this year, the talks are once again stalling due to Yerevan’s baseless statements and claims. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan views the upcoming COP29 event in Azerbaijan in November as an opportunity to create a favourable environment for peace, yet he hesitates to take essential steps towards achieving it.

In his recent speeches, Pashinyan has emphasised how interested Armenia is in signing a peace agreement and has claimed that Armenia has no territorial demands against Azerbaijan. However, the Armenian constitution’s reference to the Declaration of Independence clearly asserts territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Pashinyan overlooks this contradiction and continues to stress the importance of signing a peace treaty between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

This raises important questions. Given that the Armenian military, after realising its defeat on the battlefield during the Second Garabagh War, targeted civilians in Barda and Ganja with rocket attacks, and considering the Armenian government’s hostile stance against Azerbaijan in various international forums, supported by pro-Armenian international organisations, how credible are Pashinyan’s promises of peace?

Moreover, the scepticism surrounding Pashinyan's position is reinforced by the contradictory remarks of his own foreign minister, Ararat Mirzoyan. At the Warsaw Security Forum, Mirzoyan made claims about Azerbaijan’s alleged attacks on Armenia’s internationally recognised borders and the "expulsion" of Armenians from the so-called Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. The minister also complained that the CSTO, particularly Russia, had failed to protect Armenia during difficult times while portraying Azerbaijan as an aggressor, a narrative that does not align with Pashinyan’s purported peace-seeking approach.

It is clear that Armenian officials are attempting to play a new game in the region, once again playing victims on the international stage.

Three days ago, the Armenian Constitutional Court approved the statute on the work of the border delimitation commissions between Azerbaijan and Armenia. With this court decision, Yerevan officially announced its abandonment of the concept of "miatsum"—the idea of unifying Garabagh with Armenia. However, despite this, Armenia has yet to meet the conditions put forth by Azerbaijan.

The Armenian side has not provided information on the fate of the Azerbaijanis who went missing during the First and Second Garabagh wars, nor has it handed over accurate maps of landmines haphazardly buried in Garabagh. While Armenia has not erased its territorial claims embedded in its constitution, it pressures Azerbaijan to hasten the peace process.

Considering that many international organisations, ahead of COP29, are also supporting an end to tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia and the signing of a peace treaty, it is understandable that Armenia would want to present itself as a peace-seeking actor on the global stage. However, simply claiming to have abandoned the "miatsum" doctrine without substantive action is not sufficient for the signing of a peace agreement.

After the controversies Armenia has stirred up regarding the opening of the Zangazur Corridor, Azerbaijan has agreed to temporarily postpone this issue. Yet, the Armenian foreign minister’s continued territorial claims and unfounded allegations against Azerbaijan undermine Pashinyan’s peace calls, making them neither convincing nor credible.

Armenia’s current eagerness to “establish peace” likely stems from its desire to avoid Azerbaijan’s justified demands and to quickly sign a treaty, opening borders with Turkiye and securing direct access to the West, all while maintaining its provocative stance. Otherwise, Pashinyan would have first addressed the comments made by his own foreign minister before using COP29 as a pretext to announce his willingness to sign a peace agreement with Azerbaijan. Armenia’s efforts to play these roles in the media and politics are laughable, but the reality is that just last week, the Armenian military shelled Azerbaijan’s borders. Ignoring all these facts, while Armenian officials themselves remain divided, and accusing Azerbaijan of avoiding peace, is clear evidence of the chaotic situation within Armenia.