Armenia Fully Recognizes the Territorial Integrity of Azerbaijan Says Pashinyan

^{Image: Vladimir Tretyakov} 

On April 18, Russian, Iranian, and Armenian news agencies all reported a speech by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan addressing a special session of the Armenian National Assembly.  

“I confirm that the Republic of Armenia fully recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan” he said, “and we expect Azerbaijan to do the same.” This, he insisted, meant “recognizing the territory of the former Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic as belonging to the Republic of Armenia."   

This apparently simple formula is the only basis for a lasting peace treaty between the two countries, he continued. Where the problem lies, of course, is agreeing on an exact definition of where the borders lie, given the differences between maps of different Soviet periods.   

Pashinyan’s solution to this was that approved Soviet maps of the Armenian and Azerbaijan SSRs be agreed upon and attached to any peace treaty as a basis for territorial recognition.   

“Actually, we have agreed on this with the president of Azerbaijan in Prague and Sochi” Pashinyan added, a warning that without an international mechanism in place, the very signing of an imperfect peace treaty could actually result in a new escalation or even war.