The most convenient time to resolve the Artsakh issue was in 1994 when Azerbaijan was very wretched; the issue of Artsakh’s status wasn’t going to be solved, but the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast and the Lachin corridor would remain, and peacekeepers would be deployed, said Levon Ter-Petrosyan, First President of Armenia, and leader of the Armenian National Congress political party during an interview aired on Armenian Public Television, reports News.am.
Ter-Petrosyan says the idea that it was possible to maintain the liberated territories forever is absurd.
“There is no and there has never been an ally to help resolve the issue. Now it’s very difficult. Back then, Armenia had something to cede, but it lost the opportunity for concession. We weren’t going to cede Nagorno-Karabakh. Now we can’t do anything since it’s not in our hands, and Armenia can’t decide on anything,” he added.
Ter-Petrosyan says Robert Kocharyan’s statement on regaining Hadrut and Shushi is a dangerous statement.
“This can lead us Armenians to more havoc. Azerbaijani troops are in Hadrut and Shushi, and we can only regain them through war. This means Robert Kocharyan is promising a new war and more victims. Who will force Azerbaijan to leave? The whole world considers Nagorno-Karabakh a part of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan has only regained a part of Nagorno-Karabakh. Nobody condemned Azerbaijan. The world will force us to agree that Nagorno-Karabakh is a part of Azerbaijan. Nothing depends on Armenia anymore, it’s over,” the ex-president said.