"Strong Armenia"  to propose law restricting Azerbaijani citizens   from property ownership and short-term stays

ArmInfo.  The "Strong Armenia" party is planning to pass the "Anti-Safarov Law," which would prohibit Azerbaijanis from purchasing land or apartments in the Republic, receiving gifts, and staying in the country for more than  10 days. Narek Karapetyan, a board member of the "Strong Armenia"  party, stated this in an interview with the Armenian television  channel "Kentron."

Recall, Ramil Safarov is the murderer of Armenian officer Gurgen  Margaryan. In 2004, during a NATO training camp in Budapest, Safarov  hacked Margaryan to death with an axe while he was sleeping. A  Hungarian court sentenced him to life imprisonment, but after his  extradition to his homeland, he was declared a national hero of  Azerbaijan for the murder of an Armenian.

First, a member of the party's political council clarified the basis  for their claim that "300,000 Azerbaijanis will come to Armenia if  Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan regains power." According to  Karapetyan, the primary proof that this could happen is the fact that  Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has gotten everything he wanted so  far. "Back in 2018, when Pashinyan came to power, he wanted five  districts of Artsakh and got them. After that, Aliyev wanted Berdzor  and Karvachar, then he wanted all of Artsakh—and got them too. Later,  Aliyev wanted a road through Syunik and declared that Armenia must  change its constitution. The Armenian prime minister initially  rejected this, but eventually agreed to these conditions. Pashinyan  gave everything Aliyev wanted," Karapetyan stated.

Today, according to him, the Azerbaijani side is already making new  demands on the Armenian authorities.  Karapetyan recalled that three  months ago, Azerbaijan once again claimed that Armenians should  "return" to what they refer to as their "historical lands." "Aliyev  stated that Azerbaijanis should allegedly return to these territories  (referring to the sovereign territories of Armenia) 'not in tanks,  but in cars.' Following this, the Chairman of the Caucasus Muslims  Office (CMO), Sheikh-ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade, asserted that  300–400 Azerbaijani mosques in Armenia need reconstruction. A few  days ago, in the Ordubad community of Nakhichevan—the area closest to  Meghri—it was announced that a large forum would be held on the topic  of returning to so-called 'Western Azerbaijan,' during which programs  financed by the Azerbaijani government would be discussed," the  party's board member noted.

Furthermore, as Karapetyan noted, on the day of the Armenian  Genocide, the Azerbaijan University of Economics announced it was  opening an economics department in the so-called "Western  Azerbaijan," where the mineral deposits in that territory (i.e.,  Armenia - ed.) would be studied. "This has never been mentioned on  the Public Television of Armenia (PTA), and not a single expert has  told our public about it.  But we must talk about it so that people  know what awaits them (under the current government - ed.).  Unlike  Armenians, they are working for the long term. They are already  laying the groundwork for these plans," Karapetyan asserted.

Meanwhile, according to a board member of the Strong Armenia party,  the party has developed a program aimed at preventing the  implementation of Azerbaijan's plans. Karapetyan stated that, if they  come to power, they intend to introduce legislation referred to as  the "Anti-Safarov law." He explained that the law would prohibit  Azerbaijani citizens from purchasing land in Armenia through any  companies, acquiring apartments, or receiving property as gifts. It  would also restrict Azerbaijani nationals from staying in Armenia for  more than 10 days, he concluded.

Recall, Narek Karapetyan previously reported that Azerbaijan had  submitted a concept for the resettlement of Azerbaijanis in Armenia  to the UN and the EU. According to him, all information about this is  available on official Azerbaijani websites and portals. He mentioned  that the promotion of this concept began after the violent occupation  of Artsakh in 2023. According to him, the Azerbaijani authorities  have been making active efforts in this direction for the past four  months.