During the ongoing court proceedings on May 22 at the Baku Military Court, video footage was presented showing a 1993 meeting between Armenia’s first president, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, and representatives of the former so-called structure.
In the footage, L. Ter-Petrosyan is seen stating that he provided the so-called entity, illegally established on Azerbaijani territories, with the highest level of security guarantees on behalf of Armenia.
He referred to the security guarantee agreement—set to be signed between Armenia and the so-called entity—as a classified document.
In the video, he notes that the agreement would be made in two copies and adds: “The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic relies on guarantees from the international community, the Russian Federation, the United States, and especially the President of the Republic of Armenia, Levon Ter-Petrosyan.”
Ter-Petrosyan further declares that Armenia commits to using all its resources, including direct military intervention, and rules out any possibility of transferring Lachin to Azerbaijan in future negotiations.
Responding to questions from the prosecutors representing the state, the defendant Arkadi Ghukasyan confirmed that he had participated in that meeting with Ter-Petrosyan. Calling it a turning point, he recalled that the footage was recorded after the occupation of the Kalbajar district and said that at the time, he was the head of the delegation of the former so-called structure negotiating with Azerbaijan, as well as a member of its parliament.
Ghukasyan added that after the meeting, Georgi Petrosyan resigned: “Karen Baburyan assumed the role of Speaker of Parliament. Together with Robert Kocharyan, he signed the document presented by Levon Ter-Petrosyan, according to which the Republic of Armenia took responsibility for ensuring the security of Karabakh until the conflict was fully resolved.”
