Senior MP rejects Azerbaijani claims that Constitution obstructs peace deal

A senior Armenian lawmaker has rejected Azerbaijani claims that Armenia’s Constitution is allegedly the “only obstacle” to the finalization of the initialed peace deal.

MP Sargis Khandanyan (Civil Contract), the Chair of the Parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee, made the remarks shortly after Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said that in order to finalize the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Armenia must change its Constitution. Bayramov, speaking at a press briefing, recalled Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s statement that the text of a new Constitution will be presented to the public by the end of this year, stressing that the timeframe for adopting the new Constitution is an internal matter for Armenia.

Sargis Khandanyan assured that Armenia’s Constitution in no way constitutes an obstacle to the signing of a peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Khandanyan also stressed that Armenia is not discussing the issue of constitutional amendments with Azerbaijan, since the adoption of a new Constitution is a matter of Armenia’s domestic agenda.

“As for Azerbaijan’s concerns regarding Armenia’s Constitution, we continue to insist that the peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan fully dispels those concerns, given that the agreement will be subject to a conclusion by Armenia’s Constitutional Court. The Constitution in no way constitutes an obstacle to the signing of the peace agreement,” Khandanyan said during a briefing with journalists in parliament.

Article 12 of the initialed peace agreement, in particular, stipulates: “The Parties shall be guided by international law and this Agreement in their bilateral relations. Neither Party may invoke the provisions of its domestic law as justification for failure to perform this Agreement.”

Armenia and Azerbaijan initialed a peace agreement in Washington on August 8, 2025. Azerbaijan, however, has since stated that it will formally sign the peace agreement when Armenia changes its Constitution. The Azerbaijani side claims that there is a territorial claim against Azerbaijan in Armenia’s Constitution, referring to the reference to Armenia’s Declaration of Independence in the Constitution’s preamble. The 1990 Declaration of Independence, in turn, cites a 1989 act adopted by the legislative bodies of Soviet Armenia and Karabakh. This, according to Azerbaijan, amounts to a territorial claim.

The Armenian government has repeatedly stated that the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia contains no territorial claim against any country. The Constitutional Court of Armenia likewise ruled that the Constitution does not contain any territorial claims.

The Pashinyan administration has been speaking about the need for a new Constitution for several years.