Armenian authorities made grave mistake by equating return of  Armenians to Artsakh with return of Azerbaijanis to Armenia - ex-FM

ArmInfo.  Equating the return of Armenians to Artsakh after forced displacement with the so-called return of Azerbaijanis to Armenia was the most serious mistake made by the current government. Former Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan stated this in a video posted on his Facebook page, amid Azerbaijan's active promotion of the idea of resettling Azerbaijanis in Armenia.

Given the importance of the issue, Oskanyan called for an end to  turning it into a point of contention between the government and the  opposition. "React to the Azerbaijanis' statements and actions,  including in the United States and other European countries. This all  poses a serious danger. Talk that there's no such issue and that it's  just opposition speculation is untrue. After all, they said the same  thing about Artsakh, and ultimately, we lost it. This won't happen  immediately, but the foundations are already being laid, and if we  don't face the truth today, it will be very difficult later," warns  the former Armenian Foreign Minister.

He expressed confidence that the current Armenian government will  make any concessions: implementing Trump's route (TRIPP - ed.),  handing over the so-called enclaves from which the infiltration into  the country will begin. "This isn't a question between the opposition  and the government; it's a matter of Armenia's national security. If  we don't address this, we'll soon see that the state of Armenia is no  longer Armenian territory. As a result, we could lose a large part of  our country. This issue must be made a focus of the country's foreign  policy," Oskanyan believes.

Addressing the government's assertions that Azerbaijanis will abandon  this program if Armenia stops "planting the Artsakh flag and talking  about it," Oskanyan stated that this is not the case. "Conflating  these two issues was the most serious mistake committed by the  Armenian authorities. The so-called return of Azerbaijanis living in  Soviet Armenia cannot be equated with the return of Artsakh  residents, who were forcibly displaced just a couple of years ago  from what was once an autonomous region and then spent 30 years  negotiating self-determination with international mediation. The  issue of the return of the Artsakh residents is enshrined in  international law. There is a ruling by the International Court of  Justice, several resolutions by the European Parliament, an  initiative by the Swiss Parliament, a statement by over 100 US  congressmen, a statement by members of the UK Parliament, and  statements made at the executive level of individual countries," the  former minister emphasized.

In light of the above, he once again called for this issue not to be  ignored and to be taken seriously. "Speak about this, because it's a  serious threat, it's Azerbaijan's state program. First, we'll lose  Syunik, then they'll penetrate Tigranashen, Tavush, then the more  central regions, and one day we'll truly open our eyes and see that  we're living in a country where we, as Armenians, are no longer the  majority," Oskanyan concluded.

It's worth noting that after the violent seizure of Artsakh,  Azerbaijan began promoting a new narrative about so-called "Western  Azerbaijan." Thus, the Azerbaijani authorities are attempting to  advance the creeping occupation of Armenia by Azerbaijanis,  attempting to resettle approximately 300,000 Azerbaijanis in Armenia.  Moreover, at the time of the collapse of the USSR, fewer than 80,000  Azerbaijanis lived in Armenia. These latter left Armenia voluntarily  in the late 1990s, receiving compensation from the Armenian state for  the property they abandoned, unlike the approximately 500,000  Armenians living in Azerbaijan. The latter fled Azerbaijan, trying to  save their lives amid pogroms, often naked.

It's worth noting that before the latest parliamentary elections in  Armenia, Azerbaijan presented a concept for the resettlement of  Azerbaijanis in Armenia to the UN and the EU. Furthermore, 11 days  after the elections in Armenia, Azerbaijanis held a large forum  dedicated to the so-called "return" in Ordubad, Nakhchivan, located  10 km from the Meghri community in the Syunik region. And on June 24,  the so- called Baku initiative group will hold a forum in the US  Congress in Washington, where the issue of the so- called "return of  Western Azerbaijanis" and "their right to self-determination" will be  presented.