Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan today gave a somewhat circuitous answer when asked if the country’s armed forces would come to the defense of Artsakh if attacked by Azerbaijan.

Pashinyan, during a televised press conference today, said Armenia’s military is constitutionally obligated to ensure the country’s territorial integrity and security.

Pashinyan said Nagorno Karabakh has its own defense force given Azerbaijan’s continued aggression, adding that the rights and security of Armenians there much be ensured in a format that they regard as trustworthy.

Pashinyan has called for direct talks between Stepanakert and Baku under international supervision. Artsakh government officials today called for a UN presence in the region.

Pashinyan avoided a Hetq reporter’s question that the Armenian military, before and during the 2020 war, actively participated in the defense of Artsakh.

“We do not want a new war and we must do everything to prevent a new war. We must do everything to restore the territorial integrity of Armenia through the peace process, in the logic of demarcation and delimitation,” Pashinyan replied.