During a panel discussion with the participation of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia within the framework of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, Jeyhun Bayramov stated that a historic opportunity for settlement has been created in the region. He recalled that last month Armenia and Azerbaijan finalized the text of the peace treaty.
“Baku considers this to be an extremely important and serious development,” the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister emphasized. At the same time, he noted that the obstacles to signing a peace treaty remain the dissolution of the Minsk Group and the Constitution of Armenia, which, according to the Azerbaijani side, allegedly contains territorial claims against Azerbaijan.
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan responded to Bayramov’s statements.
“We have expressed our readiness several times to start the process of dissolving that structure. That structure can be dissolved if there is no conflict. And this is an interesting question. Do we have a conflict now or not? On the ground, no, we do not have a de facto conflict. However, on paper we do not have a signed and ratified agreement on peace and interstate relations. The solution is obvious, at least for us. Let's sign the treaty, put an end to this conflict in an institutional way. We can create a commission to discuss all the issues,” Mirzoyan noted.
The Minister also responded to Jeyhun Bayramov’s claims that the Constitution of Armenia should be changed.
“As for the Constitution of Armenia... We also have concerns regarding the Constitution of Azerbaijan. And we are not saying this just for the sake of mirroring. The Republic of Azerbaijan declares itself the legal successor of the First Republic of Azerbaijan. And it has declared its sovereignty over much larger territories than the current Republic of Azerbaijan, including about 60% of the current Armenian territories. And the question arises as to what approach we are adopting. Are we going to first have answers to all possible questions and only then establish relations, or are we building on the historical progress that has already been achieved? I repeat, Armenia and Azerbaijan have reached an agreement on the text of the treaty, recognizing each other's territorial integrity within the borders that existed before the collapse of the Soviet Union. These processes can last indefinitely. We need to understand whether we are focusing on the future or the past," said Ararat Mirzoyan.
