VIDEO: Robert Kocharyan Acknowledges That Artsakh Is Part of Azerbaijan Along with Shushi and Lachin: Prime Minister

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated in the National Assembly that Armenia stands by Artsakh, regardless of the attempts by various circles to sow discord between Armenia and Artsakh.

“The radical opposition is trying to present the narrative that during their time in power, they adhered to the slogan and strategy of ‘Artsakh will never be part of Azerbaijan.’ Since our radical opposition has crossed all possible lines in this sense, I am compelled to share disappointing news: these claims are complete lies. Throughout the entire history of the negotiation process, both Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan, and their satellite party, the Dashnaktsutyun, have acknowledged Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan and have not operated under the principle of ‘Artsakh will never be part of Azerbaijan,’” Pashinyan said.

He noted that on November 25, 1998, the then-government of Armenia, led by Robert Kocharyan, agreed to base negotiations on the so-called “common state” proposal presented by the co-chairs, which states: “Nagorno-Karabakh is a republican-type state territorial formation and together with Azerbaijan constitutes a common state within its internationally recognized borders.”

Pashinyan made another reference: “Citizens of Nagorno-Karabakh will have Azerbaijani passports with a special note for Nagorno-Karabakh.” According to Nikol Pashinyan, after the “common state” negotiation package, there followed the package on “territory exchanges,” which has been much discussed.

“With that negotiation package, the rulers of Armenia at that time recognized Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan because the essence of the mentioned package was that Armenia is handing over the Meghri region to Azerbaijan in exchange for receiving Nagorno-Karabakh,” he said.

The Prime Minister declared that Robert Kocharyan acknowledged that Nagorno-Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan, along with Shushi and Lachin. According to him, these facts have been reinforced during the discussions of the Madrid Principles. “Let us note that by adopting the Madrid Principles as a basis for negotiations, the leaders of Armenia at that time accepted Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan and excluded any practical opportunity for Artsakh to be outside of Azerbaijan,” the Prime Minister said.