Pashinyan points out territorial claims against Armenia in Azerbaijani constitution

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YEREVAN, September 2. /ARKA/. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has highlighted the existence of territorial claims against Armenia within the Constitution of Azerbaijan./pp

We are not raising the issue of amending the Azerbaijani Constitution because the [projected] peace treaty includes a provision that neither side can refer to its internal legislation, Pashinyan said during a press conference on Saturday./pp

The Constitution of Azerbaijan refers to the 1991 Act of State Independence. This act mentions the Declaration of Independence of Azerbaijan from May 28, 1918. Moreover, the Act of Independence states that today's Azerbaijan is the successor of an Azerbaijani state from 1918-1920. In the 1918-1920 Declaration, it is stated that the territories of Azerbaijan include the Southern and Eastern Transcaucasia. On a map presented by the Entente, Azerbaijan claimed full ownership of today’s Syunik and Vayots Dzor regions, and partial claims on the Tavush, Gegharkunik, Ararat, Lori, and Shirak regions. So, unlike the Constitution of Armenia, the Constitution of Azerbaijan contains territorial claims against Armenia, Pashinyan explained./pp

The Prime Minister noted that this issue is a concern for the Armenian side. To address this problem, we are not asking Azerbaijan to change its Constitution. Instead, we emphasize that there is already an agreed article in the peace treaty, which, if signed, will resolve this issue. It ensures that neither side will refer to its internal legislation. The rest is history, and it cannot be erased, Pashinyan added./pp br/p