Top MP: Any Land Swap with Azerbaijan Must Go to Referendum

Any scenario of a possible exchange of territories between Armenia and Azerbaijan must be put to a referendum, as such a decision exceeds the powers of the government or parliament. This was stated by Sargis Khandanyan, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign Relations, in a conversation with journalists at the National Assembly, providing details on the border delimitation process and the issue of enclaves.

According to Khandanyan, first, all border delimitation protocols between the two countries must be approved, after which the parties must sign a corresponding agreement, which in turn must go through a ratification process. Only after these steps will the actual delimitation work begin, and only then will Armenia and Azerbaijan discuss how they will address the topic of enclaves.

The deputy clarified that the issue of exchanging territories is not on the agenda at the moment and cannot be, as it is preceded by the complex process of delimiting the enclaves.

"There is no topic to hide here. The issue of exchanging territories cannot be at this stage, as the enclaves must first be delimited. It is not known when that will be. At some stage of the delimitation process, the issue of enclaves must also be discussed," Khandanyan noted.

The most important emphasis, however, concerns possible territorial exchanges. The committee chairman assured that even if, theoretically, the parties come to such a decision, the final word will belong exclusively to the people of Armenia.

"If by any scenario it is decided that the RA and Azerbaijan will exchange territories, a referendum must be held on that issue," he concluded.