Armenia’s Territorial Integrity Cannot be Subject to Bargaining – Ambassador Varuzhan Nersesyan

LONDON – Things are more promising than they were a few months ago – but political will and compromise are needed to find a long-term solution, Armenian Ambassador to UK Varuzhan Nersesyan said as he weighed on perspectives of “just peace” between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

In an article published by The Telegraph, the Ambassador reminded of the atrocities carried out during the mid-September attack on Armenia’s sovereign territory and noted that two years after the fighting stopped, Azerbaijan still holds dozens of Armenian prisoners of war. Furthermore, Azerbaijan’s government has announced that it intends to erase Armenian inscriptions on religious sites in the territory that it occupied in the 2020 war against Nagorno-Karabakh.

“The tragedy in Ukraine has been a useful distraction for Azerbaijan but perhaps it’s also a lesson we should all heed. There must be vigilance against any further military escalation and recognition that a clear path towards a comprehensive peace has already been laid out. Since the end of the war in 2020 the Armenian Government has adopted the “peace agenda” and has committed to opening an era of peaceful development in the South Caucasus,” Varuzhan Nersesnayn said.

The Ambassador said “Armenia is ready for compromise but one that opens a path for a real and long lasting peace between neighboring countries.”

“Its territorial integrity cannot be subject to bargaining and Azerbaijan’s forces must withdraw from the areas it now occupies since May 12, 2021,” he said.

“The war in Ukraine and the energy crisis will not be enough to provide Azerbaijan with cover for any further aggression. Only constructive engagement, political will and mutual compromises will lead to a just peace for both countries,” the Ambassador noted.