Armenian parliament speaker: Shushi should become a symbol of Armenian revival
YEREVAN, May 9. /ARKA/. Armenian National Assembly Speaker Ararat Mirzoyan in his message issued today on the occasion of the Victory and Peace Day emphasized the most important role of the town of Shushi in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) for the Armenian identity.
"May 9, 2021, which is the first after the September 27 aggression against Artsakh unleashed by Azerbaijan and Turkey is difficult to celebrate as we used to for many years. Nevertheless, we must pay tribute to our grandfathers who participated in the Great Patriotic War (WWII), to our fathers and brothers who took part in the First Artsakh war and in the liberation of Shushi,” said Mirzoyan's message.
The Parliament Speaker also stressed that for many years the Armenian Shushi was and still remains one of the most important pillars of Armenian identity and today, despite the fact that Shushi is under the control of Azerbaijan, it should be one of the most important symbols of the Armenian revival.
The Republic of Armenia should continue negotiations within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs to achieve recognition of the right of the Armenians of Artsakh to self-determination and the restoration of its territorial integrity.
For almost 30 years, the Armenian people celebrated May 9 as a triple holiday: the Day of Victory in the Second World War, the anniversary of the formation of the Defense Army of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (Republic of Artsakh) and the Day of the Liberation of Shushi.
On September 27, 2020, Azerbaijani armed forces, backed by Turkey and foreign mercenaries and terrorists, attacked Nagorno-Karabakh along the entire front line using rocket and artillery weapons, heavy armored vehicles, military aircraft and prohibited types of weapons such as cluster bombs and phosphorus weapons.
After 44 days of the war, on November 9, the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a statement on the cessation of all hostilities. According to the document, the parties stopped at where they were at that time.
The town of Shushi, the districts of Agdam, Kelbajar and Lachin were handed over to Azerbaijan, with the exception of a 5-kilometer corridor connecting Karabakh with Armenia.
A Russian peacekeeping contingent was deployed along the contact line in Karabakh and along the Lachin corridor.
Before the war, the residence of the leader of the Artsakh diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church was located in the Surb Kazanchetsots cathedral in Shushi. -0-
