I consider wrong the approach that if Armenia’s authorities have recognized Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan, what should the international community do? Once Pol Pot, being an elected leader in Cambodia, had massacred his people. At that time, the international community did not say “Pol Pot is elected. That's not our bag!” On the contrary, it was called “democide,” and it was stopped by international forces. Larisa Alaverdyan, the first Human Rights Defender (ombudsperson) of Armenia, told this to reporters during Monday’s protest in front of the UN office in Yerevan.

"We demand the international community to nod their heads less and say: ‘Well, if Armenia has already recognized, what should we do?’ Where did all the international duties go? We have come [here] to express that. [Armenia’s PM]," she added, in particular.

Commenting on Azerbaijan's proposal to transport humanitarian aid to Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) via the Aghdam-Stepanakert motorway, a Alaverdyan said that this simply asserts that Artsakh is an inseparable part of Azerbaijan.

Regarding the notion that Armenia recognizes Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan, Alaverdyan emphasized: "You can recognize. But what do you have to do with the territories on which Armenia's sovereignty does not extend? [Armenia’s PM] Nikol Pashinyan's signature under the November 9[, 2020] [trilateral] statement is not legal because Armenia's sovereignty does not extend to the territories under which he signed."

According to Alaverdyan, Europe is indifferent to the fate of the Armenians of Artsakh.

"They are interested in two things: one is for Russia to leave the region, the second is for Iran to weaken as much as possible and not be able to compete with Turkey," Armenia's first ombudsperson noted.

"Artsakh, as an unrecognized state, has a partial international legal entity; and as such, it can petition to any [court of] instance. For example, it is written in the UN Charter that regardless of whether a state is a member of the UN or not, it can petition [to the UN] when it is threatened. On the other hand, there is the UN UNICEF office [in Armenia]. Well, where are you? Well, aren't those 30 thousand [in Artsakh] children? We demand that UNICEF immediately start working with the children who are under the so-called ‘blockade’ in Artsakh. It is not a blockade, it is a genocidal method. It is an attempt at genocide, and the attempt is just as punishable as the genocide," stressed Larisa Alaverdyan.