Former President Robert Kocharyan said the “best option” for an Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty would be to designate Russia, the United States, and China as guarantors. Speaking on Channel 5, he argued that Armenia’s recent actions sidelined Moscow from the Karabakh file and undercut its role as mediator.
Kocharyan contended that Armenia “did everything to get the Russians out of Artsakh,” noting that Vladimir Putin co-signed the November 9 statement and therefore shared responsibility for its implementation. He said Yerevan later refused to carry out that document and, in Prague, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan recognized Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity “including Artsakh,” which, in Kocharyan’s view, “nullified” Russia’s mediation role. “The loss of Karabakh is a direct consequence of the statement signed in Prague,” he said.
Addressing the Washington track, Kocharyan proposed adding a parallel agreement with a formal guarantee mechanism. “It is always possible to discuss and make proposals that do not negate what has been done but rather complement it,” he said. He argued that Armenia can balance major powers by avoiding their red lines: “Everyone has a painful ‘corn.’ We do not trample on them. We try to build relations in areas where these countries have common interests.”
Turning to domestic politics, Kocharyan said the government’s focus on a “peace agenda” reflects a lack of other achievements. He claimed the authorities have failed to deliver on their 2021 promises and that “most citizens of Armenia see this.” Responding to Pashinyan’s assertion that his team is “the only force that brings peace,” Kocharyan countered: “This is said by a man who brought the most terrible war to Armenia, with the most victims and wounded, and now tries to pose as a dove of peace. The most peaceful years in Armenia were during my presidency. We had the fewest casualties and no territorial losses.”
