Pashinyan: Armenia considering military, political alliance with Karabakh

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia is considering a military and political alliance with Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in an interview with Al Jazeera.

"The alliance actually de fact exists, because we state that Armenia is the guarantor of security of Karabakh, and we need to think about its future development. In our agenda we do have this point," Pashinyan said.

"And it's very important to note that this situation has created a new military-political reality in our region. One component, as I said, is that for many years Azerbaijan has developed a military rhetoric, and has now attacked Nagorno-Karabakh, and it has happened with Turkey's obvious support. And in the international media, there is already a broad discussion of the fact that in the territories that it controls in Syria, Turkey is recruiting mercenaries and transporting them to our region. And therefore, Armenia and Karabakh need to increase our cooperation in the security field."

The recognition of Karabakh is also on the country's agenda, and the decision to do or not do that depends on a variety of factors.

Azerbaijan launched a large-scale offensive against Karabakh (Artsakh) in the morning of September 27, shelling Armenian positions and civilian settlements with large caliber weapons and rocket systems. Armenia and Karabakh have introduced martial law and total mobilization. The Armenian side has reported deaths and injuries both among the civilian population and the military. International and local journalists too have been injured in Azeri shelling of civilian settlements.

Hayastan All-Armenian Fund has launched a fundraising campaign to support Nagorno-Karabakh amid Azerbaijan's aggression.