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The Head of the NA Delegation to OSCE PA Organization, the Chair of the Standing Committee on Foreign Relations of the National Assembly Sargis Khandanyan gave a speech at the Session going on in Bucharest.

In his speech the MP noted:

“Thank you, Mr. Chair,

First, let me thank Tobias Winkler for doing outstanding job drafting this report and resolution despite the limited time. It is both comprehensive and addresses the pressing security challenges in our region.

The draft resolution also addresses the current security and political situation in the South Caucasus, specifically the peace negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. And I was planning to talk about the aspirations towards peace that Armenia has, and as my colleague said, that Armenia stands ready to sign a comprehensive and sustainable peace agreement with Azerbaijan based on mutual recognition of each other's territorial integrity, the inviolability of borders, the principle of non-use of force in the spirit of the Helsinki Final Act. Moreover, recently the Armenian government expressed its readiness to sign the peace treaty within the upcoming month based on the principles that I mentioned above.

But this proposal of the Armenian government was met exactly by the same demand that was just voiced by the colleague from Azerbaijan, who was talking about the Constitution of Armenia. The negotiated peace agreement clearly states that the parties recognize each other's territorial integrity and do not have claims against each other. There is also agreed provision in the draft peace agreement that neither party may invoke its domestic legislation for not implementing its obligation under the peace agreement, which is also very well-known principle of international law and this kind of rhetoric and demands, I find, is a clear intervention in the domestic politics of Armenia and internal affairs of Armenia, which is unacceptable.

And here, I would like to quote paragraph 45 of the draft resolution: “The Assembly welcomes diplomatic efforts by the international community aimed at facilitating dialogue conducted in good faith as well as other efforts dedicated to build trust between Armenia and Azerbaijan.”

Dear colleagues, your engagement is crucial. Your attention to the region is key for stability, because when you overlook this region other actors who are not necessarily interested in peace and stability activate their malign influence. This deteriorates the security situation in the region and poses serious threats to the democratic aspirations of my country, its independence, and sovereignty. And my message that I bring from my country to you, to the international community, is: “Be engaged and don’t overlook our region.”