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U.S. Hails Pashinian’s Promise Of Peace Deal With Azerbaijan


Germany - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian during the Munich Security Conference, February 18, 2023.
Germany - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian during the Munich Security Conference, February 18, 2023.

The United States welcomed on Friday Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s pledge to negotiate an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty which contrasted with his claims that Azerbaijan is planning another attack on Armenia.

“There will be a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and it will be based on the joint official statements adopted at the highest level,” Pashinian tweeted late on Thursday, repeating a statement made by him during a meeting of his cabinet held earlier in the day.

Speaking at that meeting, Pashinian described as an “act of aggression” Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s latest threats against Armenia. He said Baku is questioning Armenia’s “right to exist” and “leading the situation to a new escalation.”

However, Pashinian said in his ensuing Twitter post that “there won’t be а new escalation.” “The international community must strongly support this narrative,” he added.

Vedant Patel, a spokesman for the U.S. State Department, praised Pashinian’s tweet and shared it on his page.

“[Secretary of State Antony] Blinken is very engaged in facilitating peace discussions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and we are encouraged by the progress made toward lasting and sustainable peace in the South Caucasus,” wrote Patel. “We very much appreciate Nikol Pashinian’s message on that progress.”

Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian speaks during a news conference in Yerevan, March 14, 2023.
Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian speaks during a news conference in Yerevan, March 14, 2023.

Pashinian’s critics at home accuse him of making conflicting statements on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. They say that his promise of a peace deal with Baku is illogical given Yerevan’s allegations about possible Azerbaijani aggression.

Pashinian charged on March 14 that Baku is seeking a “mandate to perpetrate genocide or ethnic cleansing in Karabakh.” “I consider the possibility of escalation to be high,” he told a news conference.

The Azerbaijani military has repeatedly accused Armenia this month of transporting military personnel and weapons to Karabakh and threatened to take “resolute” actions to stop the alleged shipments. Yerevan has strongly denied the allegations, saying that Baku may be preparing the ground for launching offensive military operations in Karabakh or along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.

The rising tensions followed Pashinian’s February 18 meeting with Aliyev which was organized by Blinken in Munich. Blinken spoke of an “opportunity to bring a peace agreement to fruition” when he commented on Armenian-Azerbaijani peace talks on Wednesday.

Pashinian complained last week that the Azerbaijani side is rejecting most Armenian proposals on the peace treaty and making more demands unacceptable to Armenia.

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