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Armenian MP Tigran Abrahamyan of the opposition Pativ Unem bloc has reacted to the latest meeting of the Artsakh and Azerbaijani officials.

The meeting was held at the headquarters of the Russian peacekeeping forces stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh. An Azerbaijani readout of the meeting said it focused on the Artsakh Armenians’ “integration into Azerbaijan”. Artsakh’s authorities denied the statement, claiming the parties discussed technical and humanitarian issues.

In a social media post on Thursday, Abrahamyan stated the communications are part of Baku’s efforts to incorporate Artsakh into Azerbaijan.

“By creating artificial problems and "heroically" offering solutions to them, Azerbaijan is creating a wide field of constant communication and cooperation with the Artsakh people, which is one of the key steps to ensure integration,” he wrote.

“Let's assume that the decision-makers in Artsakh are only thinking about overcoming the current challenges, but the fact is that Azerbaijan’s tactics will lead to a point of no return, because the ongoing process is in line with Azerbaijan’s rules of the game and the agenda it has put forward.

“As for the main figure representing Artsakh at the recent meetings, Secretary of the Security Council Samvel Shahramanyan, whose involvement has been widely discussed in the media over the recent days, despite the fact that he does not have much experience in the negotiation process, he is a tough man capable of acting effectively in crises and has a great track record as an NSS general.

“But the problem is not his persona, but the policies and decisions of the top leadership underlying his approaches as a negotiator. I am sure Shahramanyan realizes that he has entered a minefield without demining equipment, and any careless step can cause an explosion,” the deputy stated.