Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Lena Nazaryan, Head of the Armenia-France Parliamentary Friendship Group Vladimir Vardanyan and representatives of the factions of the National Assembly today met with the nearly 20-member delegation of the French National Assembly which will be in Armenia and Artsakh and have several meetings on October 25-27.
Welcoming the French MPs to the National Assembly of Armenia, Nazaryan expressed gratitude to them for supporting the Armenians at this difficult moment and having the courage to call things by their names and protecting universal values. Nazaryan also provided details about the situation created as a result of Azerbaijan’s military aggression against Artsakh and emphasized that Azerbaijan has also targeted the peaceful population through the use of prohibited weapons.
“Armenia says it is ready for mutual concessions, if the right of the Armenians of Artsakh to self-determination is recognized through recognition of the Republic of Artsakh. The international community must not just make calls. It needs to recognize the Republic of Armenia for the salvation of the Armenian nation. We can’t allow the repetition of 1915,” Nazaryan concluded.
French-Armenian MP Guillome Kasbarian stated that he and the other MPs want to get acquainted with the situation on the spot to show France and Europe what is really happening in Armenia and Artsakh and to show the aggressor who has crossed the red line and is violating elemental human rights. Touching upon the recognition of Artsakh’s independence, Kasbarian informed that some of the MPs have already signed under the draft statement on recognition of Artsakh.
The deputies of the National Assembly of Armenia considered the need for a ceasefire primary and called the guests’ attention to the fact that Azerbaijan violates the declared humanitarian ceasefires and continues hostilities. They called on their French colleagues, as the deputies of the parliament of a country that is a Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group, to be the frontrunner and prevent the Azerbaijani-Turkish aggression and recognize the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination, considering that there is no alternative to this.
The French MPs asked if it was possible to settle the conflict within the scope of the OSCE Minsk Group, to which the deputies of the National Assembly of Armenia stated that an attempt is being made to change the composition of the Minsk Group through this Azerbaijani-Turkish aggression which the Armenian side believes is absolutely unacceptable.
