Villages in Tavush will not be “surrendered” but will be “returned” to Azerbaijan – pro-government MP says

There are no villages in Armenia that could be handed over to Azerbaijan, MP from the ruling Civil Contract Party Hovik Aghazaryan said today.

“There are no villages in Tavush region that should be handed over to Azerbaijan, there are villages in Tavush region that belonged to the Azerbaijan Soviet Republic, and they should not be handed over, but returned under their control,” he told reporters.

According to the MP, firstly, there are no guarantees that Azerbaijan will take reciprocal steps (that it will return parts of the 31 Armenian villages it now controls), and secondly, threats and pressure from Azerbaijan have their limits.

“I believe we are taking a step towards peace,” he said. At the same time, Aghazaryan noted that he does not see any reciprocal steps from Azerbaijan, apart from various statements not backed by concrete steps.

“If we make this step now and they do not make a reciprocal step, we will reach a deadlock,” the MP said.

On Azerbaijan’s territorial claims to Armenia

Azerbaijan refuses to recognize that it has occupied parts of 31 settlements in Armenia and at the same time demands the transfer of 4 villages in Tavush – Baganis Ayrum, Nerkin Voskepar (Ashagi-Askipara), Kirants (Kheirimli) and Berkaber (Kizil Khajili). The interstate highway to Georgia passes through the territory of these villages.

On March 12, Pashinyan stated that “there has never been and cannot be any talk about transferring the villages of the Tavush region to Azerbaijan.” However, on March 18, he met with residents of these villages in Tavush and tried to persuade them to surrender the territories, saying that “otherwise there will be war.”