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Russian experts: Attempts to link the Karabakh issue to a peace agreement are groundless and illegal-OPINION

16 February 2023 17:00 (UTC +04:00)

"Armenia's attempts to link the Karabakh issue to a peace agreement are groundless and illegal. Because Karabakh is Azerbaijan. Armenia, as well as its Western patrons, must accept this once and for all," stated by Russian political experts in their statements to APA's Moscow correspondent.

According to them, Yerevan's delay in signing the peace agreement with Baku will lead to the tragic end of Armenia's statehood.

Armenia will either accept Azerbaijan's peace proposal, or its statehood will end tragically

The editor-in-chief of the Russian magazine "Nasionalnaya Oborona", military expert Igor Korotchenko told APA that the peace agreement between Baku and Yerevan is possible on the basis of five principles put forward by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev: "Because the proposals of the Azerbaijani side are in line with international law, the UN Charter and based on international realities. Attempts to link the Karabakh issue to a peace agreement are groundless and illegal. Because Karabakh is Azerbaijan. Armenia, as well as its Western patrons, must accept this once and for all. Therefore, Armenia will either sign the peace agreement, or the events that may happen will end tragically for the statehood of Armenia."

According to the Russian military expert, Armenia still does not fulfill its obligations: "Irevan does not implement tripartite statements. The Sochi and Moscow agreements have not been implemented. Pashinyan refused to open the Zangezur corridor at the end of last year. Although he has undertaken to do so. The borders of Armenia and Azerbaijan have not yet been delimited and demarcated. They did not hand over the maps of the mined areas they occupied for 30 years to Azerbaijan. Armed provocations and anti-Azerbaijani campaign by Armenia continue. Against this background, it is difficult to expect goodwill from Armenia. That's why I think that the tandem of diplomacy and precise surgery-power method is the most optimal option to force Armenia to peace."

Karabakh Armenians should either accept Azerbaijani citizenship or leave that area

Russian political expert Alexey Naumov told APA that he does not consider Nikol Pashinyan's next hostile move a surprise. According to him, this hostile step was taken in relation to both Azerbaijan and Russia: "I would even say that this is a hostile step in relation to Karabakh Armenians as well. Instead of accepting the reality, Armenia gives false hopes to the Karabakh Armenians. The reality is that Karabakh Armenians should either accept Azerbaijani citizenship or leave that area. This is the current reality. It is understood that here we should not look at Pashinyan's steps inspired by the French gendarmerie, but at the dynamics after the war of 2020. During this period, Armenia discredited itself as an active participant in international relations. The separatists were told that they had no other choice. The environmental action on the road to Lachin proves this to them with certainty. During this period, Armenia also lost respect in front of Russia. Yerevan is always looking for a mediator and some kind of partner. Ilham Aliyev clearly stated at the beginning of this year that the peace agreement is on the table and this agreement will not be on the table forever. I think that by the end of this year, we will witness the solution of this problem, the return of the occupied territories to Azerbaijan and the reintegration. I believe that there is not much time left for Pashinyan, his allies and separatists to accept Azerbaijan's offer peacefully. Otherwise, we can witness the solution of this problem with Russia's tacit consent in a moment."

On November 10, 2025, Karabakh will be completely under the control of Azerbaijan

Director of the Russian Institute of Political Studies, and political scientist Sergey Markov believes that on November 10, 2025, the part of Karabakh that remains under the control of peacekeepers will come under the control of Azerbaijan. Political scientist predicts that this will happen peacefully.

"I think that the settlement of the Karabakh issue will be like this: The negotiations will continue for another 2 and a half years. Because Pashinyan is afraid of real peace. He thinks that as a result of peace, either he will be overthrown, or an Armenian terrorist will come from Lebanon or somewhere and shoot him. Therefore, he refuses to take responsibility. The current tripartite agreement will expire on November 10, 2025, and the agreement will not be extended. Because the contract will have already played its role. Russian peacekeepers will quietly leave Karabakh and the Azerbaijani Army will quietly enter those territories. There will be no fighting. Pashinyan will say that I wanted something better, but it didn't work out," the Russian expert emphasized in his statement to APA.