Opposition MP: Azerbaijan will continue to press for more concessions from Armenia

Azerbaijan will continue to exert maximum pressure on Armenia to secure further concessions even after achieving most of its demands, opposition MP Tigran Abrahamyan claims.

In a social media post on Wednesday, Abrahamyan, secretary of the Pativ Unem faction, said President Ilham Aliyev’s recent remarks in Baku, including references to the “right of Azerbaijanis to return to Armenia” and accusations over the destruction of cultural and religious heritage, showed Baku was not easing its stance.

“While the Armenian leadership presents peace as an accomplished fact, the Azerbaijani president is talking about the alleged expulsion of Azerbaijanis and the destruction of their cultural and religious heritage,” Abrahamyan wrote “In short, everything they’ve been claiming for the past five years.”

He also pointed to comments made days earlier by a senior aide to Aliyev in the presence of an Armenian official, referencing the so-called “Zangezur Corridor” and Azerbaijan’s expanding regional role.

“Azerbaijan has already secured the overwhelming majority of its demands,” Abrahamyan said. “It has used the Armenian leadership to advance its image and ambitions, has become a regional actor and has deprived Armenia of the ability to act independently.”

“In the current situation, what will Azerbaijan do? Yes, it will exert pressure on Armenia all the way to the top to obtain what has not yet been achieved,” he added.