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The RA NA delegation has just returned from Strasbourg after taking part in the PACE Summer Session. The main event of the Session was the adoption of the resolution entitled Ensuring free and safe access through the Lachin Corridor and its consultations, which is a very important event, as the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) with that resolution affirmed that there is no free and safe movement through the Lachin Corridor at this moment. During the press conference, the Head of the RA NA delegation to PACE, the Vice President of the National Assembly Ruben Rubinyan said about this in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. The members of the delegation Vladimir Vardanyan, Arusyak Julhakyan and Hripsime Grigoryan also took part in the press conference.

Speaking about the resolution Ensuring free and safe access through the Lachin Corridor adopted by the Assembly, Ruben Rubinyan informed that before writing the resolution, the rapporteur arrived in Armenia and saw the Lachin Corridor from the Armenian side and recorded that there is no access.

“In the resolution it is recorded that the Lachin Corridor is not only closed, but Azerbaijan has disrupted the gas and electricity supplies to Nagorno Karabakh, the humanitarian problems, which were caused because of the blockade of Nagorno Karabakh, the speech of hatred being used by the higher power of Azerbaijan. In it a call is made to begin Baku-Stepanakert negotiations under the addressing the problems connected with the security and rights of the Nagorno Karabakh people and international mechanisms,” Ruben Rubinyan said.

The MP noted that the delegation of Azerbaijan did its best in order to amend or fail the resolution.

“The Azerbaijani side proposed more than 60 amendments, and its 99 percent was not accepted, and the resolution was adopted,” the Deputy Speaker of Parliament said. In response to the journalist’s question, as a result of the adoption, on the expectation’s and mechanisms of the Republic of Armenia, Ruben Rubinyan said that we should observe the judicial decisions and resolutions being adopted by the international organizations as particles of one process, which strengthen each other.

“At the same time we should strengthen the pressure on Azerbaijan. We have reached this resolution in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe due to work of several years. It can be used in the judicial processes,” the Deputy Speaker of Parliament said. According to Ruben Rubinyan, the during the discussion of the abovementioned resolution in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe some MPs voiced questions if after all this Azerbaijan should continue being PACE Member State.

“From now on we’ll work that the Council of Europe and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe follow which part of the mentioned ideas and proposals have been implemented. We’ll also work that the CoE and PACE send fact-finding group to the Lachin Corridor and Nagorno Karabakh,” Ruben Rubinyan said.

The Deputy Speaker of Parliament also touched upon the normalization process of Armenia-Turkey relations.

“The last agreement was that at the beginning of the tourist season the land border for the citizens of the third countries and for those having diplomatic passports should be open. The Armenian side does work for making the relevant infrastructures function properly ion Margara, which will be completed soon, we hope that the Turkish side also will implement the agreed work and during the summer the agreements will be fulfilled,” the Vice President of the National mentioned and added that he, if necessary speaks with the Special Representative of Turkey and informed that there is no agreement.

Vladimir Vardanyan also responded to the problem. He informed that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe will regularly receive reports for the Committee of Ministers about the processes so that the solution of the problem will become closer.

“PACE recorded that Azerbaijan violated its obligation assumed before PACE to solve the Karabakh conflict through exclusively peaceful means,” Vladimir Vardanyan said.

During the press conference the theme of the Rome Statute was also not bypassed.

“The Constitutional Court made a relevant decision, where the international legal obligations enshrined in the Statute of the International Criminal Court recognized consonant to the RA Constitution. The launch of the law implying ratification of the international treaty by the NA is exclusively within the domain of the official authority, when it will be presented, the NA will make a corresponding decision,” Vladimir Vardanyan said.

Regarding the expectations from the negotiations being scheduled between Armenia and Azerbaijan on June 27, Ruben Rubinyan informed that for the treaty designing peace Armenia and Azerbaijan continue having disagreements on the main issues.

“We expect disagreements. The position of Armenia is that we want to have a text of peace treaty, which will stem from our interests, and it will be possible to sign. Naturally, the process is hard, there are issues on which there are already disagreements. There are also issues, on which there are also agreements. But on the main issues disagreements continue remaining. The expectation is that it will be possible to approach the positions for more several steps,” the NA Vice President said.

Ruben Rubinyan informed that in the context of deblocking there is agreement on sovereignty and legality, but that is another issue that that agreement has not been fixed on the paper, there is hope that it will be fixed.

There are three most basic and the most important paragraphs for the Armenian side.

“The first one is to lay down a concrete map on the basis of the mutual recognition of the territorial integrity. The second one the addressing of the Nagorno Karabakh people’s rights and security that we think that should take place through Baku-Stepanakert dialogue – international mechanism. The third one is the institute of guarantees,” Ruben Rubinyan said and added that Azerbaijan violated many agreements, for example the November 8 Statement. It is difficult to find a paragraph there that Azerbaijan has not violated, therefore, it is very important to have certain international guarantees that that treaty will be brought into life,” the Deputy Speaker of Parliament noted.

The NA Vice President underlined that Charles Michel said that Armenia and Azerbaijan mutually recognize each other’s territorial integrity, Azerbaijan has not denied, but has not stated the same text.

“The representatives have not stated that they recognize the Republic of Armenia with the territory of 29800 km² , that is a problem. We discuss with our international colleagues this issue,” the Head of the RA National Assembly delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe said and added: “Everybody knows which are the borders of the Republic of Armenia, it is problematic that Azerbaijan does not announce that recognizes our borders. It testifies to the fact that Azerbaijan at least does not show sincerity and constructivism, but we work that that country also announces it and fixes the recognition of the RA borders.”

“If Armenia and Azerbaijan reciprocally recognize each other’s territories, it means that the armed forces of Azerbaijan should withdraw from the occupied parts of the territory of the Republic of Armenia,” Ruben Rubinyan said and reaffirmed that the Azerbaijani troops should be on the opposite side of the border.