He noted that if the parties remain committed to the already agreed principles, the document will soon be signed.
As Pashinyan pointed out, the first principle is mutual recognition of territorial integrity. Thus, Baku recognizes the territory of the Republic of Armenia as 29.8 thousand sq. km, while Yerevan recognizes the territory of Azerbaijan as 86.6 thousand sq. km.
“I want to say that the accuracy of these numbers becomes a reason for criticism. The traditional distrust of precise figures applies here as well. The agreement was reached at a political level, and the idea was to refer to a source that is not influenced by the parties. At the same time, both parties understood that demarcation and delimitation of borders would be based on this source,” Pashinyan explained, adding that the figures were taken from the 1977 Soviet encyclopedia.
The second principle, according to Pashinyan, is as follows: the parties agreed to delimit the border based on the Almaty Declaration. This means that the administrative borders of the Soviet republics are now the state borders of the countries, and thus, their inviolability must be recognized.
He emphasized the importance of having maps that reflect the reality of that time. The Armenian Prime Minister added that such maps exist.
“If there’s political will, progress can be made (in negotiations),” said the head of the government.
Pashinyan named the opening, based on equality and reciprocity, of regional communications as the third principle. These should operate under the jurisdiction of the countries through which they pass.
