The solution is evident — signing the agreement and ending the conflict through institutional mechanisms: Mirzoyan to Bayramov

Armenia and Azerbaijan have all the prerequisites to sign a peace treaty, begin a new stage of dialogue, and open a new era of peaceful relations in the South Caucasus.

Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan made the statement during a panel discussion held in Antalya with the participation of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan.

According to Mirzoyan, dwelling on the past is not a constructive approach and will not allow the parties to have an effective discussion to reach concrete solutions.

“I prefer to focus on the realities of the present and the future. If we focus on historical issues — whom this or that territory belonged to 100 years ago, or which side killed more people — we will be drawn into another conflict. The Armenian government strives to establish stable and lasting peace in our region, primarily through the normalization of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations. We have made progress as a result of long negotiations and have agreed on the content of the peace treaty. Now we want to start consultations as soon as possible to determine the time and venue for signing the treaty,” Mirzoyan said.

Does the current text of the agreement provide answers to all possible questions? In Mirzoyan's opinion, it does not. He expressed his conviction that there is no agreement in the world that can address every issue.

 According to him, the current draft simply serves as a basis for resuming relations, while problematic issues can be discussed further, creating new opportunities for cooperation.

“This is just the beginning. We propose forming a commission that will discuss other problematic issues. What the parties communicate to their societies, and what messages Armenia and Azerbaijan send to the world, are crucial. The question is: are we digging up the past again, or are we building a united, prosperous future for our citizens?” Mirzoyan said.

During our meeting, Azerbaijani FM Bayramov raised some preconditions. We have repeatedly shown our readiness to begin the process of dissolving the OSCE Minsk Group. The existence of that structure makes no sense if there is no conflict.

While we have no conflict on the ground, we also do not yet have peace enshrined in a document, nor normalization of relations confirmed by signatures.

We can continue to philosophize on this issue, but for us, the solution is clear: we must sign the agreement and put an end to this conflict through an institutional mechanism. We are ready to sign at any time — within minutes. Let’s finally sign the peace agreement and form the joint commission, which I have already mentioned in my speech,” Foreign Minister Mirzoyan said. 

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, in turn, once again presented demands to amend the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia. In response, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan emphasized that the Armenian side could also refer to the Constitution of Azerbaijan, but added that such an approach would not be either mirrored or proportionate.

"Yes, the preamble to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia refers to the Declaration of Independence. However, the Constitution of our neighboring country states that the Republic of Azerbaijan declared itself the legal successor of the previous republic. We all know that the first Republic of Azerbaijan claimed sovereignty over a larger territory than present-day Azerbaijan, including some parts of what is now independent Armenia. Therefore, the issue again concerns the approach we take and the basis on which we conduct our dialogue. Do we want to start cooperation only after receiving answers to all questions, or do we rely on the issues on which we already have an agreement?" said Mirzoyan.

He stressed that an unprecedented situation has been created in which Armenia and Azerbaijan have reached an agreement on the text of the peace treaty and have recognized each other’s territorial integrity, established after the dissolution of the USSR.

"So, are we relying on this reality, or are we going to ignore this historic opportunity and introduce new problematic issues to the negotiating table? I am convinced that in that case, the process will never be completed," he noted.

Addressing Bayramov’s claim that the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia contains a provision stating that Nagorno-Karabakh belongs to Armenia, Mirzoyan officially clarified that the Armenian Constitution is an open and public document, and anyone can verify that it contains no such provision.

"Why does the Azerbaijani side keep raising this issue when, according to one of the agreed points in the peace treaty, the two countries recognize each other's territorial integrity, which is a completely acceptable position? There is also the understanding that neither party can refer to its internal legislation to justify the failure to sign the peace treaty. We are convinced that the shortest path to overcoming all obstacles is to sign and ratify the treaty," Mirzoyan concluded.