In a new development, Armenia has expressed its willingness to make concessions on the Nagorno Karabakh issue after 10 days of bloody battles in the region, and stressed its confidence that Russia will defend it when necessary.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that his country is ready to make concessions in its dispute with Azerbaijan over Nagorny Karabakh, provided that Baku has a similar intention.
"The disputes must be resolved on the basis of mutual concessions," Pashinyan said in an interview with Agence France-Presse in Yerevan, adding that "Nagorny Karabakh is ready and Armenia is ready to make concessions in exchange for those which Azerbaijan is ready to offer."
He expressed his "confidence" that Russia would help his country if it came under direct attack, in light of the continuing battles with Azerbaijan, which is still confined to the Nagorno Karabakh region, which is occupied by Armenia.
In the same interview, Pashinyan said, "I am confident that Russia will fulfill its obligations if the situation so requires" within the framework of the existing military alliance between the two countries.
Turkey's responsibility
The Armenian Prime Minister considered that the renewed fighting in the region was caused by Turkey's support for Azerbaijan, denouncing what he considered "a terrorist war against a people fighting for their freedom."
He stressed that "had it not been for the massive movement of Turkey, this war would not have started. If it is true that the Azerbaijani authorities have adopted a large number of war rhetoric in the last 15 years, the decision to start the war is due to Turkey's full support."