“A lesson for Armenia’s authorities, who praise the Yerevan–Nakhchivan–Baku road”

Aravot’s interlocutor is Gagik Manasyan, president of Armenia’s Federation for the Protection of Intellectual Property.

— Mr. Manasyan, Armenian cargo was recently prevented from entering Armenia in Georgia’s Marneuli district. How would you comment on this? Are the 1990s, with their well-known events, returning? Incidentally, at the end of the year, on the initiative of Armenia’s Federation for the Protection of Intellectual Property, an agreement on friendship and cooperation between the Armenian and Georgian peoples was signed with Georgian partners. How would you comment on this development?

— Before this information appeared in the press, our Georgian partners informed us of the actual facts of what had happened. Arbak Khachatryan, a member of our association’s board of trustees, had a telephone conversation with the former prefect of the Marneuli district. Incidentally, in the 1990s, the latter played a decisive role in preventing an Armenian-Georgian war and helped Arbak Khachatryan with the security of a truck convoy bringing wheat into Armenia. It turns out that Azerbaijanis living in Marneuli, under the influence of alcohol, came out into the street from a roadside restaurant when they noticed the Armenian convoy, threw stones at it, and hurled insults at the Armenian drivers.

More than 10 people were arrested in connection with this. The investigation established that the actual culprits were shepherds, who are now hiding in the mountains. Law enforcement agencies are currently carrying out the relevant operations to locate the shepherds. This is the latest lesson for Armenia’s current authorities, who promote the safety of the newly operated Yerevan–Nakhichevan–Baku road day and night. If the Turks living in Georgia’s Marneuli district dare to commit such acts on the territory of another republic, presumably they will be even more unrestrained inside their own country.

— There appears to be no response to what happened at the state level. Will attempts be made at the public and civil-society level to resolve the problems with the neighboring state?

— I cannot answer whether negotiations are taking place at the state level, especially since state structures do not currently exist. As you point out, at the public and civil-society level, we are trying to achieve a certain result through Arbak Khachatryan, who has many personal connections in Georgia. Having obtained permission from Georgia’s commandant’s office, we are planning a visit by our delegation to Georgia in the coming days. We will also visit the Marneuli district, and we will discuss the results after the visit, with facts.

Nelly GRIGORYAN

Aravot daily newspaper, January 29, 2021