Armenian MP says compatriots live not only in Karabakh, but also in Javakhetia, Beirut, Glendale

Armenians live in Karabakh but also in Javakhetia, Beirut, Glendale. The functions of Armenian citizens and politicians are to protect the state and its interests, Armenian MP of the ruling Civil Contract party, a major businessman Gurgen Arsenyan said.

The MP made the remarks commenting on Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statement on the recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan, Caliber.Az reports with reference to the Armenian media.

He noted that the primary task of the ruling force is to protect the state interests of Armenia, all other issues can be components of the life and political agenda of the country. Arsenyan added that he fully supports the point of view of the head of government.

“Politicians received from the population of Armenia a mandate to serve the state interests of the country. Any figure who insists that the state interests of Armenia should be sacrificed to all other issues on the agenda is carrying out anti-state activities,” he said in response to a question about the dissatisfaction of the Karabakh Armenians.

According to Arsenyan, Armenian society is now facing a historical dilemma, and a choice must be made between "heart" and "mind." He believes that state and national interests sometimes contradict each other and now is such a moment. In such situations, priority should be given to the public interest. The MP once said this to Serzh Sargsyan when the issue of ratification of the Zurich Protocols on the normalisation of relations with Türkiye was discussed.

At a press conference on May 22, Pashinyan stated that the territory of Azerbaijan within 86,600 square kilometres, which Armenia recognises, includes Karabakh and Azerbaijan's enclaves.

After a trilateral meeting between Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, EU Council President Charles Michel and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Brussels on May 14, Michel stressed that both sides recognised each other’s territorial integrity on the basis of the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration.

Michel’s statement explicitly specified the square kilometre area of both countries. This means Armenia has officially recognised the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast as part of Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan’s enclaves are the Gazakh district's Baghanis-Ayrim, Ashaghi Askipara and Yukhari Askipara, Barkhudarli, Sofulu villages and Nakhchivan's Karki village.

Armenians occupied these settlements as a result of hostilities in the early 1990s, during the first Karabakh war.