Government Endorsement of Bill Does Not Imply Karabakh Recognition, Armenia’s Foreign Ministry Says

Rumors around the Government’s conclusion on the bill co-drafted by opposition lawmakers Zaruhi Postanjyan and Hrant Bagratyan under which Armenia would formally recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as an independent state are inappropriate since “the conclusion of the Cabinet does not imply an endorsement of said initiative,” Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, following the executive body’s Thursday sitting.

“On a number of occasions, Armenia has clearly stated in which case it would recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. When making such an important decision, the President of Armenia, as a credible and reliable partner, would inform in advance his partners, and, first and foremost, the heads of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries.

“We hope that Azerbaijan will find the sensibility to refrain from repeating its adventures unleashed in early April. Only by acknowledging the lack of an alternative to the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is it possible to return the process onto the negotiation track and find an effective way for the full implementation of the right to the self-determination of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh,” the Ministry’s statement read.