Opposition MP says Pashinyan signals willingness to meet Azerbaijan’s demands

Armenian opposition lawmaker Tigran Abrahamyan on Friday accused Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of signaling a readiness to meet Azerbaijan’s demands “at any cost”.

Speaking during a parliamentary briefing, Abrahamyan, secretary of the opposition Pativ Unem faction, said families of soldiers killed or missing in the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war are demanding the release of a long-awaited report by a parliamentary investigative commission.

He said the authorities had pledged after the war to produce a report identifying those responsible and providing clear assessments of key events, including the circumstances surrounding deaths and missing personnel. However, the report has not been made public and currently remains classified.

Abrahamyan also pointed to disagreements within the ruling party over the report, reiterating his faction’s position that officials who held responsibilities during the war could not ensure an impartial investigation.

“The commission has conducted its inquiry and reached a controversial point,” he said, declining to provide further details due to confidentiality restrictions. He added that the government had failed to fulfill its promise to address the concerns of victims’ families.

The opposition will support efforts to make the report public, he added.

Abrahamyan also backed legal action by relatives of fallen soldiers against Pashinyan, accusing the prime minister of making contradictory public statements.

Referring to Pashinyan’s recent remarks suggesting that ethnic Armenians fled Nagorno-Karabakh without resisting during Azerbaijan’s 2023 military offensive, Abrahamyan questioned the claim. He noted that the commander of the Artsakh Defense Army continues to serve in Armenia’s armed forces.

“This raises two possibilities: either the prime minister is misleading the public, or he considers it acceptable that individuals he has described as having fled are now serving in the Armenian military,” Abrahamyan said.

He added that more than 230 Armenians were killed and several dozen remain missing during the two-day escalation in 2023.

Commenting on Pashinyan’s suggestion that a second referendum could be held to remove references to Armenia’s Declaration of Independence from the constitution, Abrahamyan said the move reflects broader political calculations.

“In an effort to secure his political future, he is signaling to Baku that he is prepared to ensure the fulfillment of Azerbaijan’s demands at any cost,” Abrahamyan said.