Armenia Clarifies Stance on Enclaves: Based on Documents

Political discussions around the issue of enclaves-exclaves, which remains a key topic in the border delimitation process between Armenia and Azerbaijan, have entered a new phase. While the office of Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan does not provide official clarifications on whether the commissions of the two countries have reached any specific decision, representatives of the ruling political force are outlining the Armenian side's position, emphasizing the importance of documentary evidence, reports "Azatutyun" (RFE/RL's Armenian Service).

Tension over the issue escalated, especially after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's recent statement. Over the weekend, he stressed that as a result of border delimitation, Artsvashen and other occupied territories must be returned to Armenia. This statement, in turn, sparked broad public and political discussions about whether the return of Artsvashen implies the transfer of territories considered Azerbaijani enclaves to Azerbaijan.

Pashinyan himself had previously clarified his position, stating: "I have long said that we cannot, I cannot, renounce the topic of enclaves, because we, with exclaves-enclaves, have such a problem ourselves."

While Deputy Prime Minister Grigoryan's office, which coordinates the delimitation process, remains silent, Hasmik Hakobyan, a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Relations Committee and a deputy from the "Civil Contract" faction, provides some clarity. She claims that the commissions of the two countries have not yet discussed this complex issue, but she emphasizes the Armenian side's readiness to act within the logic of legal and factual arguments.

According to Hakobyan, the issue of territorial ownership must be resolved exclusively on a documentary basis. She details that decisions will be made not based on political expediency, but in the presence of legal justifications.

"If it is substantiated with documents that a certain territory is not Armenia's, of course, the next stage is how the countries gain access to their sovereign territories. [...] They don't just sit and discuss it; documents are put under it. We are ready to withdraw from the territories that are not Armenia's, and we are claimants for all those territories that are the sovereign territories of the Republic of Armenia," the deputy emphasizes.

Thus, although the issue of enclaves remains unresolved and one of the most sensitive topics of the negotiation process, Yerevan is sending a clear signal that it is ready for constructive discussions based on facts and international law.