Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, through his actions, not only fails to secure peace but, on the contrary, deprives us of all prospects for achieving it. This was stated by political analyst Tatevik Hayrapetyan.
“I positively assess the processes initiated in Washington in terms of the presence of mediators, as one-on-one negotiations have only caused harm. I believe a window of opportunity has been created for the political, economic, and defense restoration and strengthening of Armenia, as well as for creating conditions to neutralize the threat from Azerbaijan,” she said.
However, she continued, Nikol Pashinyan is using this window of opportunity against Armenia, attacking the church and the Constitution while diminishing national values.
The expert noted with regret that, due to the policies of Armenia’s current government, Azerbaijan’s President Aliyev skillfully “sells non-aggression against Armenia to external players.” Aliyev demands the repeal of Section 907 and the dissolution of the Minsk Group—all just to refrain from attacking Armenia. Yet, regrettably, none of the external players seem to ask: why should Azerbaijan attack in the first place, and what justification does it have for aggression?
“He sets conditions, ensures their fulfillment, but doesn’t even sign a peace treaty, only initials it. I believe the euphoria created by Pashinyan around the initialing of the peace treaty was a grave, fateful mistake, even in the context of domestic propaganda, because in the future, with smart players, this propaganda could be turned against him,” Hayrapetyan stated.
The fact that the Armenian side returned from Washington without resolving the issue of the return of Armenian prisoners of war is Yerevan’s greatest failure.
“This issue has been simmering behind the scenes at the White House for a long time. Many senior representatives of the presidential administration raised this issue, and Trump himself raised it. How could they fail to secure their return under such conditions?” she said.
Hayrapetyan noted that Pashinyan was unable to capitalize on the situation, the interests of the meeting’s participants, or the dynamics of U.S.-Russia relations to advance Armenia’s interests.
Pashinyan only created euphoria out of thin air, allowing Baku to ensure the continuation of the process, which is its main goal, as the continuation of the process secures new unilateral concessions from Yerevan.