The main opposition Hayastan alliance had forced the leadership of the National Assembly to call an emergency session on the issue. The session did not take place, however, because the deputies representing Pashinian’s Civil Contract party boycotted it and prevented the parliament from making a quorum.
One of those deputies, Anush Beghloyan, defended the boycott, accusing Hayastan and the other parliamentary opposition bloc, Pativ Unem, of exploiting the sensitive issue for domestic political purposes.
“As you can see, this resolution has an internal political and, I would say, propaganda and speculative nature,” she told reporters.
The opposition minority denied seeking to score political points and insisted that the proposed non-binding document reflects Armenia’s and Karabakh’s national interests.
“They again avoided [a debate] because they avoid tough statements or demands addressed to Turkey and Azerbaijan,” said Hayastan’s Ishkhan Saghatelian. “They would have nothing to say if they came [to the parliament floor.] So they boycotted [the session] to stay away from any trouble.”
The resolution drafted by Hayastan and backed by Pativ Unem sets conditions for the planned demarcation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. It says that Yerevan must steer clear of any actions that would make it impossible for the Karabakh Armenians to exercise their right to self-determination.
Armenian opposition figures and some media outlets have for months speculated that during the demarcation process Armenia and Azerbaijan could formally recognize each other’s territorial integrity. This would presumably amount to Armenian recognition of Azerbaijani control over Karabakh.
Pashinian and his political allies have said that Yerevan will continue to champion Karabakh’s self-determination in further talks with Baku.
The proposed resolution also demands that Pashinian’s government reinforce the Armenian army and its border fortifications as well as “ascertain and upgrade relations with strategic partners.”
Meeting in Brussels late on Tuesday, Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev reportedly reaffirmed their plans to start demarcation talks soon. European Council President Charles Michel, who hosted the talks, said the two leaders also agreed on the need for “further tangible steps” to ease tensions along the Armenian-Azerbaijani frontier.