Your trusted source

"The Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh are fighting for their right to be recognized by the international community," Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in an interview with Al Arabia TV Channel.

Asked to reflect on provisions of international law, supporting the Nagorno Karabakh independence, Pashinyan said it is crucial to understand the reasons and the causal links behind Artsakh aspiration to independence.

"The Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh did not seek independence just out of a whim; they were facing an existential threat in Soviet Azerbaijan, which first manifested itself in a cultural genocide, in the violence that followed the 1988 peaceful struggle and in the full-scale military offensive launched in 1991. Even today we can see that the towns and villages are being shelled in Nagorno-Karabakh," Pashinyan said, adding: It is now obvious to everyone that the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh, who have always constituted more than 80% of the local population, cannot survive in Azerbaijan. The fact that terrorists and terrorist methods are being used against Nagorno-Karabakh comes to reaffirm the Nagorno-Karabakh’s right to independence, which is described in international law as “remedial secession.”

"Karabakh under Azerbaijan’s control means Karabakh without Armenians, which is genocide," said Pashinyan.

The transcript of the full interview to Al Arabia TV channel is available on the official website of the Prime Minister's office.