“The independent Armenian state is, in effect, a fascist state,” Aliyev told Azerbaijani television in an interview publicized late on Tuesday.
Armenian “fascism,” he said, poses a serious threat to Azerbaijan. “It will be either destroyed by the leadership of Armenia or we will destroy it,” he said.
Aliyev went on to again demand a halt to Armenia’s arms acquisitions. He said Yerevan should not only stop buying weapons but also send back military equipment already supplied to it by France and other countries.
Commenting on these remarks, Pashinian suggested that they are aimed at provoking similarly “aggressive responses from Yerevan” that would help Baku justify a “new escalation in the region.”
“We will not follow this path,” he told the Armenpress news agency. “We will remain committed to the peace strategy and will consistently continue the implementation of our peace agenda.”
Accordingly, Pashinian pointedly declined to condemn Aliyev’s description of Armenia as a “fascist state.”
“Let's note that there is such a perception of Armenia in Azerbaijan and try to understand the reason for it,” he said. “On the other hand, it is obvious that there is also such a perception of Azerbaijan in Armenia … The peace agenda is about discussing, addressing those perceptions. This means that we will use the language of dialogue, not aggression.”
In the same context, Pashinian continued to look forward to the signing of an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty. He expressed hope that Baku will respond positively to an unpublicized Armenian proposal regarding two of the 17 articles of the draft treaty that have still not been agreed upon by the two sides.
Aliyev again made clear, however, that the document will not be signed unless Yerevan meets multiple conditions set by him. Those include a change of Armenia’s constitution which Baku says contains territorial claims to Azerbaijan.
Aliyev further demanded the opening an extraterritorial corridor that would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave through Armenia’s strategic Syunik region.
“The Zangezur corridor must be opened and it will be opened,” he said, adding: “I have already said that they should not irritate us and should understand that we have the say here … In the modern world, the factor of force is at the forefront, and no one should forget about it.”
Pashinian responded by insisting on his government’s Crossroads of Peace project that calls for conventional transport links between the two South Caucasus states. He said Yerevan is still awaiting Baku’s reply to its “very concrete proposal” on the issue made after his most recent talks with Aliyev held in October.
Pashinian again did not disclose the proposal. The Azerbaijani side wants people and cargo transported to and from Nakhichevan through Syunik to be exempt from Armenian border checks.
Armenian officials said last year that Azerbaijan may be planning to launch another military aggression against Armenia after hosting the COP29 climate summit in November.
Pashinian’s domestic critics portrayed Aliyev’s latest remarks as a further indication of Baku’s war preparations. They accused Pashinian’s of doing little to counter that threat.
The Armenian opposition has for years said that Pashinian’s broader appeasement policy towards Azerbaijan only encourages Aliyev to seek more Armenian concessions and will not bring real peace.
