October 14, 2026
Eduard Sharmazanov, former Speaker of the National Assembly, member of the General Assembly of the RPA, writes: “I present to your court the points of the Alexandropol Treaty, which was the confirmation of the actual vilayetization of Armenia.
On the night of December 2-3, 1920, the disastrous Armenian-Turkish Alexandropol Treaty was signed.
It was signed by Turkish army commander Kyazim Karabekir on the Turkish side, and Alexander Khatisyan on the Armenian side. It consists of 18 articles. The Treaty of Alexandropol was made up of two copies, one in French and one in Turkish.
According to the agreement, Kars marz and Surmalu province were transferred to Turkey, and Nakhichevan, Sharur, Shahtakhti regions were declared temporarily under Turkish patronage, whose future fate was to be decided through a referendum. Armenia was deprived of the right to maintain an army on the basis of defeat, the size of the Armenian army was fixed at 1500 soldiers, 8 cannons and 20 machine guns.
What was that contract?
According to Article 1, the war between Turkey and Armenia was declared over.
Article 2 determined the borders between the Republic of Armenia and Turkey. Kars region and Surmalu province (more than 20.7 km²) passed to Turkey, and Nakhichevan, Sharur and Shahtakhti regions were declared temporarily under the patronage of Turkey, where a special administration would later be established through a referendum.
The Armenian government was deprived of interfering in the activities of that department, regardless of what form that department would take.
The Republic of Armenia had the right to request a referendum in Kars Marz and Surmalu Province, which was passed to Turkey, but in the same article 3 it was also stated that these territories “have an indisputable historical, ethnic and legal connection with Turkey”, which actually ruled out the need for a referendum in advance.
Article 4 Armenia was also deprived of the right to enter general disarmament and maintain an army, it could have only 1500 soldiers, 8 cannons and 20 machine guns. He could build fortifications and place the necessary heavy artillery in them, provided that there were no 15 cm caliber and long-range cannons.
According to Article 5, the political representative or envoy of Turkey, who was supposed to arrive in Yerevan after the conclusion of peace, was given the right to conduct an inspection and investigation at his discretion in connection with the fulfillment of the above-mentioned conditions. Instead, Turkey undertook to provide armed assistance to Armenia, both in case of external and internal danger, if the Armenian government addressed it with such a request. The Yerevan government renounced the Treaty of Sèvres (1920), undertook to recall its delegates from Europe and the USA “to remove from the state administration all those persons who incite and pursue imperialist problems…”. Also, he recognized as invalid all those agreements that were signed to the detriment of Turkey or affected its interests.
Turkey got the right to control the railways and communication roads of Armenia, to take military measures in the territory of Armenia.
Regions recognized as part of Armenia by the treaty, but occupied by Turkey (Alexandrapoli province) were to be released after Armenia fulfilled all the points of the treaty.
This clause gave Turkey the opportunity to continue the long-term occupation of the province, because the treaty was drawn up in such a way that one could always cling to the incomplete or incorrect fulfillment of one or another of its conditions.
Other articles of the agreement were related to free transit trade, the return of refugees to their places of residence, and the rights of the Islamic population of Armenia. All these conditions violated the rights of Armenia and prohibited the return of Armenian emigrants to their homeland.
According to Article 7, “The Turkish government waives compensation for the expenses related to the present war… the two contracting parties also waive all claims for compensation for the losses suffered during the world war.”
With that, Turkey was freed from compensation for the property of both exterminated and deported Armenians.
According to the Paris Peace Assembly, that amount was around 19 billion francs.
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Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
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