Expert: Person primarily responsible for putting Armenia on the brink of war is Pashinyan
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s failed policies put Armenia on the brink of war, according to military expert Tigran Abrahamyan, head of the analytical center Henaket.
In a Facebook post on Monday, he said there is a “misconception” that the conflict over Artsakh could have been resolved peacefully by Armenia’s former presidents.
“According to this approach, Robert Kocharian and Serzh Sargsyan could have resolved the issue and there would have been no war, everything would not have fallen to Nikol's lot, but they did not want to or failed to do it,” Abrahamyan wrote.
“First, Pashinyan and the ruling force clearly realized the scale of responsibility they were taking, and the threat of war has always existed. Another thing is that before Pashinyan’s rule, comprehensive measures were taken to prevent war, de-escalate tensions and stop hostilities in a timely manner, which was not done in the recent war.
“If Pashinyan or his supporters believe that he was a potential "victim", he could have stepped down after six months or one year in office and transferred the power to someone who could have handled difficult situations, attaining decent results
“Second, the behavior of Azerbaijan at the post-war stage makes it clear that the surrender of 5, 6 or 7 districts does not guarantee the end of the game. This was one of the difficulties in the negotiations,” the expert noted.
He stressed Azerbaijan took control of about 10 regions in the recent Artsakh war, which was more than discussed in the negotiations over the past decades, but it still demands more, seeking to gain the maximum.
“Had it been so easy to resolve the problem through negotiations, it would have been done earlier, and such a heavy burden would not have been passed on to future generations,” the expert said, dismissing the claims that the former authorities put the whole burden on Nikol Pashinyan's shoulders.
“Azerbaijan chose the best moment for an all-out war, and this was the period of Nikol Pashinyan's rule.
“The process of failures in all spheres put the country on the brink of war, and the person primarily responsible for this is Nikol Pashinyan,” Abrahamyan said.