During a conference titled “Artsakh: Unresolved Conflict, Right of Return,” former Foreign Minister of Armenia Ara Ayvazyan declared that by closing the chapter on Artsakh, the Armenian authorities are “offering not peace, but complicity.”
According to him, the authorities are attempting to distract the public from pain and historical defeat by turning the process into a redefinition of national identity. He stressed that the aim is for the Armenian people to accept not only territorial loss but also moral and spiritual defeat, Sputnik Armenia reports.
“We are told that only by abandoning Artsakh could we preserve our sovereignty and secure our future. But this claim, repeated as if it were a biblical commandment, is not only false, it is also morally bankrupt and historically blind. Sovereignty cannot be preserved by sacrificing part of the people; territorial integrity cannot be guaranteed by encouraging aggression; a nation cannot be defended by erasing its memory,” Ayvazyan said.
He emphasized that history cannot be erased, since it is written in blood, culture, and memory. In the case of Artsakh, he added, it is not only about territory but about identity, resistance, and survival — a symbol that continues to live in Armenia and the diaspora alike.
In his assessment, despite changes in geopolitical conditions, the human reality remains the same. Until the rights, dignity, and history of the people of Artsakh are respected, the issue cannot be considered resolved.
Ayvazyan also referred to the document signed in Washington on August 8, noting that it not only legitimized the use of force but encouraged ethnic cleansing, while ignoring the deliberate destruction of Artsakh’s Armenian identity and heritage. He underlined that the agreement contained no provisions for compensation to the displaced, no justice for the victims, and no accountability for the perpetrators.
“This is not peace; it is an attempt to repackage injustice. Therefore, the Artsakh issue is not resolved, the page is not closed,” Ayvazyan said, stressing that international tools still exist to protect Artsakh and its population.
He proposed creating an international defense network that would bring together experts from various fields — from lawyers to political analysts — ready to keep the issue of Artsakh on the global agenda.
On August 8, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a joint declaration in Washington consisting of seven points. It includes plans to establish a strategic transit corridor called the Trump Route (TRIPP), passing through Armenia’s Syunik province, leased to the U.S. for 99 years with an option for renewal. The route would give Azerbaijan commercial access to Nakhichevan. During the same event, Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers Ararat Mirzoyan and Jeyhun Bayramov initialed a peace and interstate relations agreement, in the presence of the U.S. leadership.
