YEREVAN. – The content of the negotiation process on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) conflict had changed in the fall of 2015 and the winter of 2016; this was followed by the April 2016 escalation. Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this during Monday’s National Assembly special session to discuss the matter of electing a Prime Minister of Armenia, answering the question of independent MP Tigran Urikhanyan.

According to Pashinyan, the concept has always been put forward that he allegedly knew perfectly well that if one of the negotiators changes, the logic of the negotiation process will change automatically. "Years will pass, the content of the documents will be revealed, and we will know that the content of the negotiation process had changed in the fall of 2015 and the winter of 2016. Then came the spring of 2016 and started on April 2. The content of the negotiation process changed at that very moment, which is confirmed by the available documents. There are records of negotiations with which I worked in 2018, during my term as prime minister," Pashinyan emphasized.

The acting premier assured that at the time, third President Serzh Sargsyan had written a letter to the mediators expressing concern over a referendum on the status of Artsakh. "His concern was that it was not clearly stated that the Azerbaijanis who are considered potential residents of Nagorno-Karabakh should also take part in this referendum; but to be a resident of Nagorno-Karabakh, one should live in Karabakh," Pashinyan said.

Then he asked, according to Sargsyan, where the Azerbaijanis who had moved from Azerbaijan to Artsakh should live.