The following is a fragment from my interview given to Armenpress news agency on December 19, 2024, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashiniyan said in a post on social media.
"Armenpress: In the same interview, the Azerbaijani President once again voiced the matter of the change of Armenian Constitution, once again claiming that it contains territorial demands against Azerbaijan.
Prime Minister Pashinyan: I’ve had several occasions to address that topic, and I find it necessary to emphasize that if this is a sincere concern expressed by Azerbaijan, all grounds exist to consider these concerns dispelled. Why? Because the allegations that the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia contains territorial demands against Azerbaijan are based on the argument that the preamble of our Constitution contains a general reference to the Declaration of Independence, which in turn mentions Nagorno-Karabakh. In its 26 September 2024 ruling, the Constitutional Court of Armenia recorded that the reference to the Declaration of Independence in the preamble of the Constitution relates exclusively to those articles of the declaration that have gained literal stipulation in the articles of the Constitution. There is neither direct nor indirect mention of Nagorno-Karabakh in any article of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia. If we were to accept the content of the Constitution the way Azerbaijan interprets it, then a question would arise, why didn’t Karabakh participate in the 1995 Constitutional Referendum, why didn’t polling stations open there and why didn’t the people vote on the Constitution. The same can be said about the subsequent presidential and parliamentary elections in Armenia. Besides, if the Azerbaijani interpretation of the Armenian Constitution were to be accurate, then the recognition of our brothers and sisters from Karabakh as refugees by Armenia would have been impossible.
Armenpress: You had said that Armenia has concerns that the Constitution of Azerbaijan itself contains territorial demands against Armenia.
Prime Minister Pashinyan: Indeed, and this concern is based on the fact that the preamble of the Azerbaijani Constitution contains a reference to the Constitutional Act adopted by the Azerbaijani Parliament on 18 October 1991. In turn, the Constitutional Act refers to the Declaration of Independence of the First Republic of Azerbaijan adopted on 28 May 1918, which records that the First Republic of Azerbaijan includes Eastern and Southern Transcaucasia. In November 1919, the Republic of Azerbaijan presented to the Entente its administrative map, according to which, Azerbaijan included the entirety of the provinces of Syunik and Vayots Dzor of Armenia, as well as parts of the provinces of Ararat, Armavir, Gegharkunik, Tavush, Lori and Shirak of Armenia, some 60 percent of the territory of the Republic of Armenia. Thus, the Constitution of Azerbaijan contains territorial demands against the Republic of Armenia. But we are not raising an issue of changing the Constitution of Azerbaijan for two reasons, first of all such an issue would bring the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process into a deadlock, and secondly, the agreed-upon part of the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty contains an article which stipulates that the parties cannot refer to their internal legislation to justify the failure of implementation of the peace treaty. Another article of the agreed-upon part of the peace treaty says that the parties recognize each other’s territorial integrity, do not have territorial demands against each other and are bound to not make such demands in the future.
Armenpress: You mean that the concerns about the Constitution must not be the reason for not signing the peace treaty, but that the signing of the peace treaty itself will dispel these concerns?
Prime Minister Pashinyan: Definitely. And if we approach the matter from the viewpoint of the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, by our laws the peace treaty must be ratified in the National Assembly after the signing. Before that, the government must submit the treaty to the Constitutional Court to verify its compliance with the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia. If the Constitutional Court decides that the text of the peace treaty does not comply with the Constitution, although such a development is less likely after the 26 September 2024 decision, it would turn out that Azerbaijan’s arguments in this matter were correct and Armenia would have to make a choice between some articles of the Constitution and the peace treaty. But if the Constitutional Court decided that the text of the peace treaty complies with the Constitution of Armenia, it will pass the ratification process in our parliament. And according to paragraph 3 of article 5 of the Armenian Constitution, in case of conflict between the norms of international treaties ratified by the Republic of Armenia and those of laws, the norms of international treaties shall apply. Thus, after ratification in parliament, the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will gain superior legal force against laws and other normative legal acts of Armenia, and the topic of territorial demands will be closed forever. The same would happen in Azerbaijan. Meaning, it is the signing of the peace treaty that will practically dispel the concerns of both Armenia and Azerbaijan, including in relation to the constitutions", Pashinyan's post said.