Pashinyan called the reservations to the Almaty Declaration "illegal"

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan reacted to Baku's claims regarding the reservations adopted by the Supreme Council of his country in the addendum to the Almaty Declaration on the recognition of state administrative borders between the former Soviet Republics.  According to these reservations, it turned out that by joining the Almaty Declaration, Armenia excludes the recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh (NK) as part of Azerbaijan because, according to Armenians, "NK seceded from Azerbaijan before this country gained independence."

The reservations made by the Armenian parliament at the signing the 1991 Almaty Declaration were not transferred to the depositary, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Wednesday, answering questions from deputies.  Consequently, the Prime Minister noted, they do not have any force from the point of view of international legal relations.

"According to international and local law, when a country makes a reservation, in accordance with the Vienna Convention, this reservation should also be notified to the depositary. We have been studying this issue for a long time and have recorded that Armenia has not notified the depositary about this. Therefore, from the point of view of international legal relations, these reservations have no legal force," Pashinyan said during the government hour.

After this statement, it is logical to expect a response from Baku - whether it agrees to accept Pashinyan's answer satisfying Azerbaijan's claims.

However, other claims remained unanswered.  Baku demands that Armenia renounce part of the Declaration of Independence of this country, which legitimizes the reunification of Nagorno-Karabakh by Armenia.  In the initial part of the Constitution of Armenia, reference is made to this Declaration, adopted on August 23, 1990 at the first session of the Supreme Council of the Armenian SSR.

The presence of the image of the territory of Turkiyey, Mount Agrydag, on the state emblem of Armenia, as a symbol of Armenia's territorial claim to the Turkish Republic, also remains a problem.

The administration of President Ilham Aliyev is closely following the unfolding political discussion in Armenia. Azerbaijani experts and media commentators have confirmed the position that genuine peace negotiations cannot continue without significant changes in the laws and constitution of Armenia.