Armenia is preparing for constitutional changes. Is peace close?

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan instructed to prepare a new draft Constitution by the end of 2026, the Armenian service of “Radio Azatutyun” reported. It is noted that Pashinyan made this decision against the background of Azerbaijan's ongoing demand to change the Constitution of Armenia.:

"Before the decision was made, the Council of Constitutional Reforms, established in 2022, was preparing a draft of constitutional amendments. The initial version of the concept was sent to the government in January 2024. Pashinyan has now instructed to prepare a new draft Constitution. The decision clearly mentions the expression "new Constitution" instead of "Amendments to the Constitution".

On June 11, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Ceyhun Bayramov said at a meeting with his German counterpart Annalena Berbock that the ongoing claims to the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan in the Armenian Constitution are an obstacle to signing a peace agreement.

On June 6, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, at a meeting with a delegation of the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-speaking States (TURKPA), touched upon the peace agreement with Yerevan and stated that the conclusion of a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan, despite the fact that the current constitution of Armenia remains unchanged, is simply impossible.

A day later, the Armenian Foreign Ministry issued a statement that it has no territorial claims against any of its neighbors, including Azerbaijan. What will become an obstacle to peace now?

Political commentator Rauf Mirkadyrov is looking for an answer to this question in the program "Difficult Question".

He recalled that the preamble of the Declaration of Independence of Armenia proclaims the beginning of the process of establishing independent statehood on the basis of the Resolutions of the Supreme Council of the Armenian SSR and the so-called National Council of Nagorno-Karabakh dated December 1, 1989 "On the reunification of the Armenian SSR and Nagorno-Karabakh."

"This means that since the adoption of this declaration, Armenia has annexed the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Republic (NKAO) of Azerbaijan. According to the current Constitution of Armenia, based on this Declaration, the territory of the NKAO belongs to Armenia."

Consequently, according to the legislative acts of Armenia, the observer noted, by recognizing the NKAO as the territory of Azerbaijan, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan violated the Constitution. And if we approach the problem from this point of view, then until Armenia excludes from its Constitution and Declaration of Independence the Resolution of the Supreme Council of the Armenian SSR and the so-called National Council of Nagorno-Karabakh dated December 1, 1989 "On the reunification of the Armenian SSR and Nagorno-Karabakh", it is impossible to sign a peace treaty. Because the basic principle of any peace treaty is mutual recognition of territorial integrity and sovereignty.

"This is the legal side of the issue and it is extremely important for Azerbaijan," Mirkadirov said. Regarding the objections on the need for these exceptions, they say, "what does it matter if there are norms of international law? The issue ends with the signing of a peace treaty," the expert recalled that Armenia is already under permanent threat of a coup d'etat.

There may be a change of government at any time. Pashinyan's opponents present recognition of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity as a huge and treacherous concession. And if the government in Armenia changes, then an appeal to the Constitutional Court will follow, which will decide that all documents signed by Pashinyan in this direction contradict the Constitution and are  considered invalid (Paragraph 3 of Article 116 of the Armenian Constitution states that "international treaties that contradict the Constitution cannot be ratified" – ed.).

"It is impossible to conclude a peace treaty without mutual recognition of territorial integrity and sovereignty, which is the basic principle of any peace treaty," the expert stressed.