Baku, Azerbaijan, April 2
Trend:
A seminar titled "A New Look at Sovereignty in the Modern World" was held in Minsk, Belarus with the organizational support of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the Minsk Dialogue expert initiative and the Austrian Embassy in Belarus, Trend reports referring to the Azerbaijani Embassy in Belarus.
The seminar included experts and scholars invited from many countries, among whom was Benyamin Poghosyan, Vice President for Research – Head of the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the National Defense Research University in Armenia and Executive Director of the Political Science Association.
The event was also attended by Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Belarus Latif Gandilov and second secretary of the embassy Jeyhun Mammadov.
During his speech, Poghosyan voiced anti-Azerbaijani and anti-Turkish thoughts. He also noted that ancient historical ties link Armenia with Russia. Poghosyan said that at one time Russia allegedly liberated the lands of southern Armenia from the Persian empire, and the Christian population of Armenia, which was under pressure from Muslims, was saved.
Poghosyan went on to say that Russia currently manages energy production in Armenia, the sphere of mobile operators and the railway, noting that the presence of a military base and air defense system in Armenia is important for the country's security. He also noted that Armenia has established ties with the EU, the US and NATO, but cannot accept projects that will harm relations with Russia. Poghosyan added that, due to its location between Turkey and Azerbaijan, Armenia ceded a certain part of its sovereignty to Russia in order to defend itself.
Speaking after the Armenian representative, Dustin Dehez, Managing Partner of Germany’s Manatee Global Advisors consultancy, said that Poghosyan’s words about Armenia having ceded a certain part of its sovereignty to Russia were surprising, and he does not understand the logic of losing sovereignty for ensuring its security.
Latif Gandilov, in his turn, noted that he did not intend to speak at the event, but the statement of “new facts” by the Armenian side forced him to express his opinion.
The ambassador said that on May 28, 1918, the territory of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was 114,000 square kilometers. After Azerbaijan regained its independence in 1991, the territory of Azerbaijan after it left the USSR amounted to 86,600 square kilometers – 20 percent of which was occupied by Armenia.
Gandilov also said that after the creation of the USSR, the Irevan Khanate was transferred to the Armenians in order to form a state for them, along with Zangazur. The ambassador emphasized that the territories of the 7 districts adjacent to Nagorno-Karabakh are twice the size of Nagorno-Karabakh itself. Despite the adoption of 4 UN Security Council resolutions in 1993-1994 in connection with the occupation of the territories of Azerbaijan by Armenia and the demand for the unconditional release of the occupied territories, Armenia still does not fulfill these conditions.
The ambassador also said that not a single Azerbaijani is inhabiting the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, and Armenians are pursuing a policy of ethnic cleansing. As a graphic example of this policy, he pointed out the genocide committed on February 26, 1992 against the population of Khojaly.
As an independent state, Azerbaijan currently cooperates on an equal footing in the region with international organizations and states, pursuing an independent foreign policy, as stated by Gandilov. The ambassador said that Azerbaijan is directly cooperating in ensuring the energy security of Europe. Azerbaijan has implemented such large projects as the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline, and the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars gas pipeline, while the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) will be commissioned this year. Gandilov thanked Dustin Dehez for the truth in connection with the sovereignty of Armenia.
