Former Artsakh Minister of State Ruben Vardanyan, in a Zoom interview with Russian RBK TV today, said he doesn’t see the possibility of a peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan anytime soon given Baku’s continued violations of the November 2020 Russian-brokered ceasefire, including the blockade of the Lachin Corridor.

Referring to discussions taking place in Washington D.C. to normalize relations between the two countries, Vardanyan said, “I believe that the basis of a new peace agreement is very weak, because it is difficult to imagine how peace will be concluded in the South Caucasus without Russia.”

Vardanyan said peace in the South Caucasus is impossible “while a gun is pointed at your forehead.”

The former minister said Azerbaijan is trying to push Russia out of the South Caucasus and refuted Baku’s claims that it actions, including setting up a checkpoint along the Lachin Corridor are permitted under the ceasefire agreement.

“The presence of Azerbaijani military or border guards is not provided for by that document, that's for sure. From that point of view, any other interpretation of the document is a game. Moreover, if Azerbaijan has a peace agenda, that is not how they implement the peace agenda by oppressing people and keeping them in tension. In such conditions, it is difficult to imagine the process of moving towards peace towards each other,” Vardanyan said.

He said that peace cannot be achieved when Baku pursues a policy of ethnic cleansing and aggression against Armenians in Karabakh.