Hagop Der Khatchadurian, the head of the pan-Armenian party’s decision-making Bureau, expressed hope that the new U.S. administration will also pressure Azerbaijan to free Armenian prisoners, including eight former leaders of Nagorno-Karabakh.
“Artsakh should be granted an interim status, and the people of Artsakh should return to their homeland with international guarantees,” he told reporters in Yerevan, adding that Dashnaktsutyun is also “working” with the governments of Russia and France for that purpose.
“It makes no sense to go into details now because we are still in the early stages,” he said. “But those consultations are taking place at the highest level.”
Dashnaktsutyun, which controls one of the two main Armenian-American lobby groups, has already received positive signals from Washington, Der Khatchadurian said without elaborating. He noted that some members of the Trump administration, including Secretary of State Macro Rubio and National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, have previously made pro-Armenian statements.
Trump also made such a statement during the U.S. presidential race. He blamed then President Joe Biden’s administration for the 2023 forced exodus of Karabakh’s ethnic Armenian population and pledged to “protect persecuted Christians” and “restore peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan.” But he has not commented on the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict since taking office late last month.
Der Khatchadurian cautioned that Armenians should not expect Trump to “elevate Armenia to his top priorities” during his 100 days in office. “But rest assured that we will keep up our work,” the Canadian-Armenian leader said at the start of a Dashnaktsutyun congress.
Dashnaktsutyun’s organization in Armenia is in opposition to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian whose government does not seem to press for the Karabakh Armenians’ repatriation or the release of the Armenian captives in its dealings with Azerbaijan, the U.S. and other world powers. Der Khatchadurian complained that Yerevan’s stance is making it “hampering” and “complicating” his party’s efforts.