ROME, September 27. /TASS/. Baku considers the Constitution of Armenia, which "challenges the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan," an obstacle for a peace agreement, Hikmet Hajiyev, the Aide to the President of Azerbaijan and head of the Presidential Administration’s foreign policy department told La Repubblica.
"We are closer to peace now than ever before, but there are still obstacles that prevent us from moving forward. In particular, it is the Constitution of Armenia, which mentions the reunification with Azerbaijani territories in Karabakh. We want to achieve peace not only with the government of Armenia, but also with its people, who must demand a referendum on amendment of the Constitution, abolishing the aspirations for Azerbaijani territories," he said.
According to the official, it is important for Azerbaijan to have guarantees against future revanchism, which undermines peace in the region.
"A referendum is necessary, during which the Armenians will show that they do not support the aspirations for Karabakh," the official added.
He also noted that the militarization of Armenia must be "responsible and proportionate," expressing his concerns over Yerevan’s procurement of long-range missiles from France, which could hit Azerbaijani cities.
"The best solution for Armenia would be neutrality, not establishment of military alliances against Azerbaijan," Hajiyev noted.
In his opinion, Baku sees attempts to erroneously support Armenia in its revanchist aspirations by certain Western countries "with colonial experience," including France.
"This is counterproductive for all Europe," he noted.
Meanwhile, Baku considers self-defense its right. Hajiyev admitted that ethnic tensions are very difficult to overcome and that would take time. Ancestors of many Azeris come from today’s Armenian territories, including from Yerevan, which "was historically an Azerbaijani city" before becoming a part of the Russian Empire, he noted.
"The Azeris with roots on these territories must be able to return to their source. But this means neither territorial aspirations, nor violation of the Armenian sovereignty," Hajiyev explained.