April 10, 2026
In the “Pressing” program Satik Seyranyan the guest is Arman Grigoryan, professor of Lehigh University, USA, political scientist is.
Recently, Iran reached a two-week ceasefire agreement with the United States, and Iran’s National Security Council announced that negotiations with Washington will begin in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, on April 10, based on Tehran’s 10-point proposal.
US President Donald Trump called this plan a “working basis” for negotiations and announced a two-week ceasefire.
Iran’s state television published the 10-point program.
- Commitment to non-aggression.
- Continuation of Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz.
- Adoption of uranium enrichment.
- Removal of all primary sanctions.
- Removal of all secondary sanctions.
- Cancellation of all UN Security Council resolutions.
- Cancellation of all International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Governing Council Resolutions.
- Payment of reparations for Iran.
- Withdrawal of American combat forces from the region.
- Stopping the war on all fronts (a complete end to the war in Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen).
Shortly thereafter, however, Israel struck Lebanon hard, breaking the ceasefire. Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian announced that Israel’s attacks on Lebanon violate the cease-fire agreement signed with the United States and threaten to make the negotiations meaningless.
Meanwhile, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf announced that Lebanon was an integral part of the two-week ceasefire with the United States, warning that violations would have consequences. “Lebanon and the entire axis of resistance, as allies of Iran, are an integral part of the ceasefire,” Ghalibaf said in a post on X. “Ceasefire violations entail an obvious price and STRONG responses,” he added. The comments came after Israel launched its heaviest airstrikes in Lebanon since the conflict with Hezbollah began last month, killing more than hundreds of people on Wednesday.
The main theses of the interview with Arman Grigoryan are below.
- Unfortunately, there is no truce. It was very short lived. Of course, one cannot downplay the fact that Trump approved the 10 points proposed by Iran, the Strait of Hormuz was opened, but it was quickly attacked by Israel in Lebanon with the help of the UAE. One of the clauses of the truce also referred to Lebanon, which Israel violated.
- Let me ask a question to those who are defeating Iran: when you look at the 10 points that Iran presented as a basis for going to negotiations, do you see that it is part of a capitulated country? In them, the capitulation of the USA was fixed more than that of Iran.
- In my deep conviction, these points, with a little editing, were put on the table by Iran immediately after the war started, and the USA realized that there was no other way out than to accept it. Trump resorted to intense PR, announcing the nuclear threat, then making it conditional on not going ahead as an answer to their ultimatum, Iran’s concessions. I repeat again, look at those 10 points.
- It was clear that Iran would not leave its allies alone, it would not go to separate negotiations. It was also obvious that one of those 10 points was about Lebanon itself.
- In Iran, they understand very well that there is no point in going to any truce without guarantees, because it is possible that the USA can solve the problem of buying time before a new attack. Iran’s military-strategic situation is much better than that of the USA, no matter how much they pretend that they have caused irreparable losses to Iran. I would advise you to look at the editorials of The Economist magazine, and you will understand who is in a better position in this war.
- If the US has not been able to resolve the question of striking back at Iran, because Iran’s ballistic missiles inflict very serious blows on the adversaries, it can be considered a failed operation.։
- Once again, the USA went to the illusion of defeating any country by air force only, without a ground operation, and failed. This is a selective war, based on the calculation of the best scenario and the pressures of various interests, to satisfy their plans. Meanwhile, Iran was a much stronger core than all the other states, which, by the way, the USA could not impose its will either. Even if there was a ground operation, the terrain and geography of Iran is very different, and achieving success is difficult, even if they could deploy so many military forces there.
- Now Trump has appeared, speaking in chess language, in a zugzwang. The US president has no choice. Several generals in the Pentagon were fired because I’m sure the ground generals resisted the plan to go into ground action. Even if they could land a landing party, communication with them would have to be maintained by air. And providing air power to a contingent of even 50,000 is a complete logistical nightmare. No serious specialist in the Pentagon believed it. The last story about saving the pilot cost 250 million dollars. The goal was to steal Iran’s uranium, but they fell into a trap and had to withdraw their troops.
- In fact, Trump has neither the choice of a ground operation anymore, nor of going to a truce and accepting his defeat. The problem here is Israel. Israel has the right to veto, it will not allow a ceasefire, because with that defeat, Israel will be in a more vulnerable position than even the USA։
- In the US, the war strategy is based on air power, and it is logical, because in this way you avoid large casualties. Before the Kosovo intervention, a question was asked in Congress: How many infantrymen’s lives is it worth to save the Kosovo Albanians? everyone said zero. In other words, they wanted to save the Kosovo Albanians, but only if it would not cost the lives of any infantrymen.
- In Iran, the policy of beheading the leadership, which is often used to create chaos in the country and collapse the systems, did not work, because in Iran they were prepared for this, so that if suddenly 7 people occupying a certain position were killed one after the other, there would be replacements, and … they already knew who the 8th would be.
- In Iran, they considered that anti-missile defense systems are very expensive, and that resource of the USA and Israel can be exhausted by striking with old missiles. A missile is always cheaper than an anti-missile. Iran also managed to destroy observation radars, the price of which is 2.5 billion dollars։ By the way, observations were also made with those radars in the direction of Russia and China.
- I think Vance obviously cannot publicly state that he is against this war or he will have to resign, but there are credible reports that Vance was not enthusiastic about this war. Tulsi Gabbard was also against it, but her approach was that it was better to stay inside the government and try to control something, than to have her position go to someone like Pete Hegsett. The Chief of the General Staff was also against it. I think Tulsi Gabbard will do the right thing by resigning…
- I repeat again, 5,000 or 50,000 troops cannot do anything, several hundred thousand people are needed, at least an army of 400,000 people, to achieve some kind of success. Can you imagine how many months it will take to deploy so many people to the required place?
- At the beginning of this war, Iran was not even given the opportunity to surrender or accept defeat. Actually, they expected suicide from Iran. The problem was to divide Iran, to turn it into Syria, to take Iran out of line. What would Iran have to do to satisfy such intentions? Therefore, I have no idea what the escalation will look like, what they haven’t done to Iran that they should do. It’s just resorting to total barbarism, but I don’t believe that Trump can resort to using nuclear weapons and go for it, and that he won’t be caught.։
- Of course, they can make Trump mentally ill, remove him and end this war, but Trump is not the only one responsible, they must be able to hold Israel’s hand if they want this war to stop. I consider the leaders of Israel to be the greatest enemies of the Jewish people. I declare with all responsibility that after the Second World War, the Jews have not had a bigger enemy than Netanyahu and other leaders. Israel is now suffering a terrible image defeat in the USA. The percentage of people with a pro-Israel position has increased։
- Iran’s demand for the withdrawal of American military presence from the countries of the region will not be limited to the Gulf countries. This will also apply to Armenia. Iran will not allow American military presence in TRIPP. Iran has always been against it, and now, when Iran is in a much better strategic position, there will be very serious pressure from Iran to cancel the project.
- The question is not whether to open that road or not, but the control of the road provided by TRIPP. I have a hard time imagining that in case of Iran’s victory, the TRIPP project will become a reality, at least in terms of control by the American consortium. Turkey will not control that road either, because the road connecting Iran to Armenia will disappear, and Iran cannot allow that either.
- It is visible to the naked eye that the USA is in a very bad situation in the context of the war with Iran, which weakens its influence. This allows Russia to take some steps, and the Russians began to express their tough positions. It is clear that the government relied on the fact that the West is the winning side, and it is necessary to rely on them.
- Putin threatened Pashinyan, and it does not surprise me at all. Every time Russia’s neighboring countries have adopted a pro-European policy, they have suffered. As for putting Putin’s port in place, we remember: 2018-2020․ How many times did Pashinyan “put Aliyev’s belly in place”, sometimes in such a way that he probably drank corvalol, but we saw how it ended. I am appalled at this level of degradation of speech։
- The meaning of what Putin said to Pashinyan was that if Armenia changes its strategic orientation, it will suffer serious losses. In any case, I associate Putin’s harsh speech with the situation in Iran.
- I don’t understand how it is possible to see these intense, continuous anti-Russian sentiments for 5 years, which are encouraged by the government, and be surprised by Putin’s harsh speech. This government has ambitions and is steadily pursuing them. First they “liberated” Artsakh, now Armenia is being transferred from the Russian yoke to the western “paradise”.
- I think it was very bad that Putin made such a statement about the June elections, which is now seen as interference, but remember that those who talk about it today, those who sharply criticize Putin’s speech, were happy just months ago with a similar statement by the US Vice President Zay D. Vance, who simply announced his support for Pashinyan, let them remember the statement of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan… It is not the business of Putin or anyone else who will participate in the elections in Armenia. and for whom the Armenians will vote. It is only the business of the Armenian people։
- Pashinyan’s threat of war is blackmail against the people.
- At least one good thing happened after Trump came to power․ The funding sources of influence agents were revealed: USAID, NDI, Soros Foundation…
- David Petraeus is playing basketball with the President of Syria, one-time terrorist, cannibal Al Jolani…. At one time, the same USA set a $10 million bounty on Al-Jolani’s head… The man-eater of Al-Qaeda, who organized the September 11 terrorist attack, is today the president of Syria, and they consider it normal, but anyone who disagrees with them is automatically declared an agent, a foreign agent. The beginning of hybrid warfare works on the same model.
- Those people do not want to hear any other position, except their point of view, they consider it a hybrid war waged by foreign agents.
- The political situation in Armenia is very difficult, and Pashinyan is not the only problem. When you look at the baggage of Pashinyan, who has been in power for 8 years, it is very difficult to find at least one or two things done that can be positively talked about, except for a couple of meters of asphalt and two kindergartens… It should have been very easy to remove a government with this kind of “earnings” from power. We have to ask ourselves: why can’t we do it? Until we find the answer to this mystery, the situation will not change. Almost all political forces tend to treat symptoms without determining the diagnosis։
RFE/RL – Six Dead In Car Collision In Armenia
- Satenik Kaghzvantsian
- Narine Ghalechian
Six people died and eleven others were seriously injured on Friday in one of the worst car accidents reported in Armenia in recent years.
According to the Armenian Interior Ministry, two cars carrying them collided on a rural road in the northwestern Shirak province. The victims included two children.
Officials said all of the injured persons were hospitalized from the scene. Three of them, a 28-year-old woman and her children aged 1 and 3, were reported in critical condition. The woman, who lost her husband in the accident, was in intensive care at the Erebuni Medical Center in Yerevan.
“We are fighting for her life,” Armen Muradian, head of the hospital’s intensive care unit, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.
The number of car accidents in the country has risen steadily in the past decade due to increasingly heavy traffic and what many see as lenient and inconsistent road policing. The Armenian police reported 4,784 accidents last year, up from 4,314 in 2024.
Interior Minister Arpine Sargsian downplayed the upward trend on February 13, arguing that the number of traffic deaths fell for a second consecutive year. In her words, 283 people died on Armenian roads in 2025, down from 333 in 2024. The number of officially registered road deaths had soared to 378 in 2023.
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‘Trump Route’ Through Armenia ‘Still Priority’ For U.S.
Despite the war with Iran, the United States remains committed to implementing an agreement to open a U.S.-administered transit corridor for Azerbaijan through Armenia, according to the State Department.
“The Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) remains a top priority for the United States, with the potential to unleash peace and prosperity in the South Caucasus region and beyond,” a department spokesperson told the Armenpress news agency late on Thursday. “The Trump Administration remains committed to making TRIPP a reality.”
“It will allow unimpeded international and intrastate connectivity in the region, expanding opportunities for increased economic growth and prosperity,” the official said.
Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan similarly insisted on Friday that despite “not-so-favorable processes taking place in the region” Washington and Yerevan keep working together on the issue.
“We are in the process of working out an intergovernmental [U.S.-Armenian] agreement,” he told reporters. “We are constantly exchanging ideas and positions on individual issues with representatives of the American administration. We hope to enter the next, construction phase as soon as possible.”
The TRIPP is to connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave through Armenia’s strategic Syunik region bordering Iran. According to a joint U.S.-Armenian “implementation framework” signed in January, a special company controlled by the U.S. government will build a railway, a road, energy supply lines and other infrastructure along the Armenian-Iranian border and manage them for at least 49 years. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said late last year that work on that infrastructure will start this summer.
Pashinian said on March 12, however, that it will likely be delayed by the ongoing war between Iran and the U.S. and Israel. He said the TRIPP is “not a priority for the U.S. administration today.”
Iranian officials spoke out against the transit arrangement in the months leading up to the war. They feared that it could undermine Armenian control of the border and lead to U.S. security presence there. Some observers believe that Tehran will now be even more opposed to the transit arrangement.
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Tsarukian Speaks Out Against Kocharian’s Return To Power
- Astghik Bedevian
Gagik Tsarukian, a wealthy businessman leading one of the main opposition contenders in Armenia’s upcoming parliamentary elections, has ruled out any post-election deals that would lead to former President Robert Kocharian’s return to power.
Tsarukian’s Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) will run in the June 7 elections in a de facto alliance with several other opposition groups and politicians. Although Tsarukian tops the list of its election candidates, he made clear on Thursday that he will not being vying for the post of prime minister. The BHK will nominate another candidate for the top government post in case of its victory, he said without naming him or her.
Tsarukian seemed open to cutting power-sharing deals with other opposition forces if they win a collective majority in the next Armenian parliament. But he ruled out any deal that would see Kocharian become prime minister.
“He did his job,” the tycoon said of the ex-president. “Let him rest so that new faces, new approaches emerge.”
Tsarukian became one of Armenia’s richest men and was widely regarded as a Kocharian ally during the latter’s 1998-2008 presidency. A number of Kocharian loyalists were repeatedly elected to the parliament on the BHK ticket in the following years.
Kocharian’s Hayastan alliance, which finished second in the last general elections held in 2021, issued a thinly veiled rebuke of Tsarukian on Friday.
“If a particular force declares that even if change depends on it, it will not cooperate, then it is openly saying that it will hinder regime change,” said Hayastan.
Tsarukian indicated his readiness to back the prime-ministerial candidacy of another, wealthier businessman, Samvel Karapetian. “We would discuss that,” he told journalists.
Under the Armenian constitution, Karapetian is not eligible to become prime minister because of his dual Russian citizenship. His political team has pledged to remove that constitutional hurdle in case of its election victory.
The BHK, Hayastan and Karapetian’s Strong Armenia bloc are widely seen as the main election challengers of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and his Civil Contract party. In a series of statements made earlier this year, senior Civil Contract figures signaled their concerns that the three opposition groups could win enough parliament seats to oust Pashinian.
Pashinian has repeatedly branded them as a “party of war” keen to reignite Armenia’s conflict with Azerbaijan. Opposition figures have countered that he is resorting to scaremongering for fear of losing power.
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RFE/RL – Prosecutors Refuse To Free Youth Jailed Over Church Incident With Pas
- Naira Bulghadarian
Ignoring calls by defense lawyers and Armenia’s human rights ombudswoman, prosecutors have again refused to set free a high school student who was arrested almost two weeks ago after confronting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian in a church in Yerevan.
The 18-year-old Davit Minasian was formally remanded in pretrial custody three days after the incident that marred a Plam Sunday Mass in St. Anne’s Church. Two days later, he reportedly passed out at a juvenile prison and was hospitalized as a result. Minasian has since remained in the Nairi Medical Center in what his lawyers describe as serious condition.
They petitioned Prosecutor-General Anna Vardapetian last week to order his release from custody. The Office of the Prosecutor-General told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Friday that a prosecutor overseeing a criminal investigation into the March 29 incident has dismissed the appeal as unfounded.
Vardapetian on Thursday refused to meet with a group of Minasian’s supporters who rallied outside the prosecutors’ headquarters in Yerevan to call for the young man’s release. Ombudswoman Anahit Manasian appeared to add her voice to those calls.
The church was packed with worshippers when Pashinian unexpectedly arrived there with his bodyguards who cleared the way for his passage. A visibly annoyed Minasian told them not to push him and said he wants to keep “standing in the middle” of the church.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he then told Pashinian before stretching a hand towards his shoulder.
Minasian was punched and knocked down by one of the bodyguards. He was arrested and charged with hooliganism and obstruction of Pashinian’s “political activities” shortly after the premier left the church amid angry cries from other believers. The young man was injured in the head and suffered concussion, according to his lawyers.
Later that day, police detained another high school student who is said to have spat at Pashinian’s limousine. He was charged with hooliganism but freed two days later.
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Armenpress: Putin announces Orthodox Easter ceasefire, Ukraine’s Zelenskiy agr
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced a 32-hour ceasefire over a two-day period for Orthodox Easter and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Kyiv would abide by the truce.
According to the Russian TASS state news agency, Putin announced the Easter truce from 4:00 p.m. Moscow time (1:00 p.m. GMT) on April 11 until midnight on April 12, 2026 (9:00 p.m. GMT). Russian troops were instructed to stop fighting on all directions but to be ready to stop “enemy aggression.”
Russia had declared an Easter truce in 2025 as well. Each side accused the other of violating it back then.
Zelenskiy said Ukraine had repeatedly proposed a halt to fighting for Orthodox Easter.
“Ukraine has repeatedly stated that we are ready for reciprocal steps. We proposed a ceasefire during the Easter holiday this year and will act accordingly,” Reuters quoted the Ukrainian leader as saying in a statement.
“People need an Easter without threats and a real move towards peace, and Russia has a chance not to return to attacks even after Easter.”
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Vance leaves for Pakistan for talks with Iran
U.S. Vice President JD Vance said on Friday he was looking forward to having positive negotiations with Iran as he left for talks in Pakistan
“We’re looking forward to the negotiation. I think it’s going to be positive,” Vance told reporters before leaving Washington, Reuters reported.
“As the president of the United States said, if the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we’re certainly willing to extend the open hand,” Vance said.
“If they’re going to try to play us, then they’re going to find the negotiating team is not that receptive.”
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Trump threatens Iran ahead of talks, warns of strikes if peace efforts fail
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is prepared to use the U.S. military to resume strikes on Iran if peace talks in Pakistan are unsuccessful.
“We have a reset going. We’re loading up the ships with the best ammunition, the best weapons ever made — even better than what we did previously and we blew them apart,” Trump told the New York Post.
No deal, he said, will lead to the weapons being use “very effectively.”
Published by Armenpress, original at
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Magnitude 3.3 earthquake strikes Armenian–Georgian border area
A magnitude 3.3 earthquake has struck the Armenian–Georgian border area. According to the Seismic Protection Agency of the Armenian Ministry of Internal Affairs, the quake occurred about 17 km northeast of the village of Bavra in Armenia’s north-west at a depth of 10 km on April 9 at 22:44 local time (18:44 GMT).
The earthquake measured 4–5 on the MSK scale in the epicenter.
The quake was felt at an intensity of MSK 3 (weak) in several villages across Shirak and Lori provinces. No damage was reported.
Published by Armenpress, original at
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French MEP presents his vision of EU priorities in relations with Armenia
French Member of the European Parliament François-Xavier Bellamy believes that the European Union has a lot to gain from cooperation with Armenia and should strengthen ties with Armenia in various areas.
The Member of the European Parliament said this in an interview with an Armenpress correspondent in Brussels.
In the interview, Bellamy touched on his expectations for the first Armenia-EU summit to be held in Yerevan in May, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s speech at the European Parliament, Armenians held illegally in Baku, and other topics.
– Mr. Bellamy, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan gave an important speech at the plenary session of the European Parliament on the future of the country and its foreign policy. How do you comment on that message, and what do you think it reveals about Armenia’s strategic direction today?
– First of all, it was very important for us that the Prime Minister of Armenia came to the European Parliament, and even returned, because this is the second time that we have received him in the parliamentary session hall. This is also a clear geopolitical choice on the part of our institution, and I am very happy about it. We do not receive all heads of state and government.
We are honored to host those whom we consider our partners, because Europe has common interests and principles with them that must be defended. And in the case of Armenia and the Armenian people in particular, it is natural that the highest representative of the Republic of Armenia is hosted in the European Parliament.
And indeed, he gave an important speech about the current situation in the Caucasus, how Armenia is engaging in the peace process today, as well as the challenges that the country faces, which also concern Europe.
-Today, Armenia is trying to move forward in its relations with Europe, further strengthening them. In your opinion, what are the priority areas in which this cooperation really needs to be deepened?
-I firmly believe that we have much to gain from closer cooperation with Armenia. We saw this at its most difficult time, during the 2020 war and then during the blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh. I was one of those who criticized European institutions for doing so little to work with the Armenian people to ensure their security and defend our common principles.
And I think this underlines the need to build this relationship in the long term and to ensure that it is mutually beneficial for both Europe and Armenia. I would point to a number of areas where work is essential. The first of these is, of course, security. I was very pleased that we managed to achieve the creation of a European border monitoring mission, which is already operating in Armenia today.
I was also one of the people who advocated for the extension of that mission. What we record is clear: since the operation of the mission, there have been no more incidents that we so often had to register with pain: attacks, aggressions, border clashes, and provocations, which, unfortunately, often resulted in casualties among Armenian soldiers or civilians.
I think the European mission has managed to maintain a certain level of stability. This was a significant issue. France is also starting to strengthen its security partnership with Armenia, and this is also developing within the framework of the European Peace Facility, which provides an opportunity to build a security partnership with Armenia through European institutions.
But we should not only work on security, we should do more. We must also work on strengthening our ties in the economic sphere. This is of fundamental importance to us. When I was in Armenia for the first time in 2020, I met entrepreneurs, young Armenian businessmen who were developing their activities and who told me how frustrated they were that they could not sufficiently access the European market.
For this, it was necessary to solve several very specific issues, for example, the issue of air connectivity. It is known that at that time Armenia was on the European aviation blacklist, but now exporting to Europe has become easier. In practical terms, it should already be easier. From a trade perspective, I think we still have a lot of work to do to facilitate connections.
And, of course, there is also the connection between societies. Armenian society should be able to connect more directly with the societies of European countries. Of course, there are already very strong ties between Armenia and, for example, France. But that connection must be kept alive. And for that, we need to do a lot of practical work, for example, on the issue of visas, which is a very important issue. I am only mentioning a few elements, but I think that these are the elements that should be priorities on the European agenda.
– You mentioned your struggle on certain issues, one of which, as we well know, also concerns the Armenian prisoners held in Baku, some of whom have been sentenced to life imprisonment, others to long-term imprisonment. The European Parliament has adopted several resolutions on this issue. What position should the European Union take on this situation, and what specific pressure measures could it use to achieve their release?
– This is a crucial issue for us, and we have repeatedly put forward resolutions in the European Parliament on this issue, related to Armenian political prisoners and prisoners of war. There is a huge injustice here. Some have been released, but others, as you mentioned, have been sentenced to very long terms.
And it is obvious that these sentences are not based on facts: they are acts of revenge and political intimidation. This is a way for the Aliyev regime, Azerbaijan to demonstrate its complete disregard for justice and the rule of law, but also its ability to harm those who oppose it. And I think we have a duty to confront that.
Our great tragedy, and I share this very clearly with you, is that a few years ago we were almost alone in the Parliament while advocating this issue. Today we have managed to form a majority. The Parliament now has a clear position, and the lobbyists who were effectively acting on behalf of Azerbaijan have now become much quieter.
But our tragedy is that the European Commission is not following us. And today this is still a matter of serious disappointment for me. The European Commission continues to implement a policy of denying reality in its approach to Azerbaijan.
We saw how Ms. Kallas traveled to Azerbaijan, as Ursula von der Leyen had done before, as if everything was normal, as if Azerbaijan could be treated as a reliable partner. This is absolutely unacceptable for us, and I think our duty today is to get out of this situation.
-The first Armenia-European Union summit is scheduled for May in Yerevan. What specific expectations should we have from that meeting, and what real progress can it bring to the partnership between Brussels and Yerevan, taking into account that the European Union is trying to demonstrate a largely similar approach to the countries of the South Caucasus, but perhaps giving some preference to more democratic countries?
-What we are showing today is that the European Parliament knows how to choose its priorities. This is the second time that we are receiving the Prime Minister of Armenia. We have not received high-ranking officials from Azerbaijan, and we will not put a sign of parity between these countries of the South Caucasus.
One defends democracy and shares that common heritage with us, which is why it is being targeted, while the other is one of the worst dictatorial regimes in the world today. We hope that one day Azerbaijan will be free from this oppressive autocracy. But at this point it is absolutely clear that we cannot, and this is the position of the Parliament, consider the Azerbaijani regime as a reliable partner in any way.
And therefore, it is really necessary that now the European Union, not only the Parliament but also the European institutions, take up this priority and do so in a clear way.
-Elections are scheduled in Armenia in June, and the European Union is following the process and will have observers. There is also support to combat cyberattacks and hybrid attacks. Some circles in Armenia believe that this is also an attempt to interfere in Armenia’s internal affairs, or perhaps just political support for the current government. What do you think about this?
-We, of course, communicate with the Armenian authorities, the Prime Minister of Armenia, as well as members of the Government and the Armenian Parliament. I want to note here again that my stance has always been very clear. I am a friend of Armenia and the Armenian people. I will never allow myself to express an opinion on the internal affairs of Armenia and the internal political situation of the country.
All we can do is simply support Armenia in protecting its territorial integrity, its sovereignty, and recognize that sovereignty also includes democracy. And we know very well today that our sovereignties, our democracies, are often subject to external interference. This is not a case specific to Armenia. It happened in France, and it happened in other countries of the European Union.
And the concern of Europe today, especially in the case of a country that is moving towards the European Union, is simply to ensure that that country can express itself freely, democratically, and truly sovereignly. Indeed, we are all glad to support Armenian democracy because it is proof that democracy is possible in this region.
Therefore, this electoral moment for us will, of course, be an important moment for the Armenian people and, I hope, a decisive moment for choosing their future.
-Thank you, Mr. Bellamy, thank you for the interview.
Thank you. Allow me to make one final point. Since we did not have the opportunity to speak on this topic, I would simply like to note that the situation of all those families in Nagorno-Karabakh who have been deprived of their homes, lands, and livelihoods is also of fundamental concern to us.
Europe must continue to work here too, to support them in a very concrete way, first of all by supporting their current lives, addressing their material needs, but also, and this is a fundamental topic for me, by working on a legal mechanism that will prepare the return of these families to their homes and their lands.
I think we all understand that, unfortunately, this will not happen tomorrow. And this tragedy is with me every day. But the fact is that it must end one day, and our duty, including to future generations, is to never consider that we have to accept the idea that “might makes right.”
The right of these people, the right of these refugees, is to continue to retain the prospect of returning home.
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