Below is Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s interview with the Russian RBC TV channel. A transcript of the interview is also available on the RBC’s website.

RBC: You have just returned from Nagorno-Karabakh. What is the situation over there?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - I was in Stepanakert, the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh. Stepanakert has been under rocket fire nearly round the clock, and, of course, civilians are suffering there. And it goes beyond all limits.

You see, if Azerbaijan insists that Nagorno-Karabakh is part of it, and they really think that Karabakh and Azerbaijanis can live with each other, why then are they destroying their own towns?

Let us try to understand the train of thought of Ilham Aliyev. He believes that if he continues to shell and bomb Stepanakert, the people of Karabakh will accept to live in Azerbaijan? This approach comes to reaffirm that Nagorno-Karabakh cannot and will never be part of Azerbaijan. This is ruled out. 100%. And this is evidenced by Azerbaijan’s actions.

RBC: Azerbaijan has stated frontline advances in recent days, boasting in particular the capture of several villages on the line of contact. Is that true?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan – If we consider the latest frontline updates coming in since early morning, we can say that the Karabakh army leaders’ plan is working - they took tactical steps in the south, left a corridor and lured the Azerbaijani troops into that corridor. Literally in these seconds, their troops are being dealt crushing strikes. And I feel that this is a turning point in the hostilities. Right now, according to my information, a real foundation is being laid for the final victory of the Karabakh army.

RBC: Why do you think so?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - I say this because the Karabakh and Armenian commanders had a plan: to withdraw in the direction of Jebrail and lure large forces of the Azerbaijani army there. Later yesterday they entered there in large, very large numbers, and this morning a crushing blow was dealt on them and the operation is successfully proceeding.

RBC: Is there any data on losses on the Azerbaijani side?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - Yes, there is already an official statement from the Armenian Defense Ministry. It is important that a lot of military equipment came there from Azerbaijan. Most of them were destroyed or simply abandoned by fleeing Azerbaijanis. So, I think that the Karabakh army will get hold of sufficient equipment today.

RBC: A few days ago, a missile strike on the city of Ganja was reported. Is it likely for hostilities to spill over into the territory of Azerbaijan?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan – It may happen, if today’s operation ends just the way it started, because after such a serious success the Karabakh army will not just sit and wait for the adversary’s regrouping. And I think that should they succeed today, they will try to build on their success.

RBC: That is, they will undertake a counteroffensive on the territory of Azerbaijan?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - I cannot make statements on their behalf. These decisions are made by Karabakh’s military leadership. I am just trying to assess the overall situation.

RBC: You have had several phone talks with Vladimir Putin since the outbreak of hostilities. What is being discussed? Are you talking about the supply of military equipment from Russia to Armenia?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - Everything is being discussed. But the main topic being discussed is the situation in our region, and especially the presence of terrorists in the South Caucasus. You see, the regional situation drastically changes as we witness that terrorists from specific terrorist groups are involved in hostilities (and, by the way, yesterday Russian officials mentioned specific terrorist organizations whose members are fighting in the conflict zone). This is a completely different situation; this puts at stake not only Karabakh, but the regional security in a broader sense - the security of Russia and Iran.

This is already a global security issue as it means that terrorism is expanding its range of influence. It turns out that Turkey and Azerbaijan help terrorists get new areas where they can be deployed. Let us imagine that somehow this conflict ends - after that what will they do? Without a doubt, some of these terrorists will remain in the region and will operate there.

We have information that the terrorists are already establishing their own order in some Azerbaijani villages. And this raises the question of to what extent the situation is actually controlled by the Azerbaijani authorities. Look, should terrorists appear somewhere else in a normal country, the government would try to get rid of them, and not give them the opportunity to freely act and impose their own rules.

RBC: Has Armenia been provided a pledge of Russia’s military intervention in this changed context?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - Russia is Armenia’s strategic ally, and we have specific agreements in the security sphere. For instance, we have established a common air defense system.

RBC: Is the common air defense system involved now?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - Yes, of course.

RBC: In combat operations, too?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - No, not in combat operations. I mean the territory of the Republic of Armenia. Our joint forces will intervene should there be a threat to Armenia’s air space. This is provided for by our agreements, statutes and other documents.

RBC: Let me note that the terrorist threat, as you said, is in Nagorno-Karabakh. I just talked about guarantees for Russia’s military intervention.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan – Yes. The guarantee applies to the territory of the Republic of Armenia.

RBC: Were these guarantees confirmed during the conversations with Moscow?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - You know, in recent conversations we discussed these topics, but since all this is stipulated in the instruments signed, there is no need to reaffirm it every time. This is an established fact, and we only discussed some nuances.

RBC: Still, do you expect supplies of military equipment from Russia to Armenia?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - Russia and Armenia are bound by allied relations, and military-technical cooperation is an integral component thereof.

RBC: Will there be new supplies in connection with this conflict?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - This is an issue that I cannot discuss in public, especially in this situation.

RBC: Do you agree that this escalation threw the negotiation process off for several years, if not for decades? Is any compromise possible at all? For example, will Yerevan agree to hand over some regions or come up with some new formulas?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - I do not think it appropriate to discuss this now. You asked if I think this war has thrown the negotiation process off for decades? I think that the current escalation has changed the overall context of this conflict. Because this is no longer a conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. This is an anti-terrorist war waged by Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia. This is a terrorist attack against Nagorno-Karabakh initiated by Azerbaijan and organized by Turkey. This is already a threat not only to Nagorno-Karabakh, but a specific threat to Russia.

The point is that either Russia assesses the situation in approximately the same way. If you have followed the official statements coming from Moscow in recent days, you could see that Russia perceives this situation in approximately the same way.

RBC: That is, the war can end only in case of unconditional surrender of Azerbaijan?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - No, the war can end only in case of unconditional surrender of terrorist groups. Because Armenia and Karabakh have not set the goal of achieving the unconditional surrender of Azerbaijan - there is a goal of unconditional surrender of terrorist groups operating in the conflict zone.

RBC: But this does not address the problems that oppose Yerevan and Baku.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - I said that the presence of Turkey and terrorists in the region changes the context. Why did Turkey return to the South Caucasus a hundred years later? For two reasons. The first is to continue the policy of the Armenian genocide. You understand, if something goes wrong, the genocide of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh will begin at least. And this is not an exaggeration. But why is it important for Turkey to continue the policy of genocide? They care for it, because the Armenians in the South Caucasus are the last impediment on Turkey’s way to the north and east.

And if we look at this situation in the context of the policy that Turkey is pursuing in the Mediterranean region with respect to Greece, with respect to Cyprus, in the context of the policy that Turkey is pursuing in Iraq and Syria, the pattern will become clearer. This is an imperial policy that threatens not only Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, but also many countries that are quite far from here.

RBC: Let me summarize: Am I right to state that negotiations with Azerbaijan on the settlement of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh are possible only if all terrorist groups leave the line of contact, the territory of Azerbaijan?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - Negotiations are quite a different topic, because there is the co-chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Group, consisting of Russia, the United States and France. They are working to resume the negotiation process. They made a statement on the situation, saying that it is necessary to immediately stop violence, fire, and military operations.

Armenia welcomed that statement. In any vase, the possibility to negotiate is indeed important. And we highly appreciate the efforts exerted by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, and we, of course, will be as constructive as possible in working with the co-chairs.

RBC: This negotiation process has been going on for over 25 years. As we can see, it did not lead to anything, and Stepanakert has been under continuous fire for the seventh day. What needs to happen for Yerevan to recognize the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - We are discussing this, and there is such an issue on our agenda. But this is not a situation in which one can specifically explain or plan an action: if this happens, it will lead to this. The situation makes us discuss several options for future action, but there is also such a nuance - we are doing everything to be as constructive as possible even in the worst of scenarios, and first of all in our relations with the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs.

RBC: Did the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs or your CSTO allies ask you not to recognize the NKR?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - No, no such request has been received so far. I will tell you honestly, from the moment we announced that we were discussing this issue, no one asked us not to do so. This was not the case.

RBC: Why do you not recognize the NKR, because that would mean the end of negotiations?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - This will not mean the end of the ongoing talks. It will depend on a specific situation, how and when this decision is made.

RBC: Are you closer to the recognition of the NKR now than at the beginning of the week?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - I have already said that this issue has been included in our agenda. But this does not mean that we will definitely make such a decision, and this does not either mean that we will not make such a decision. We are discussing different options.

RBC: Could you please tell us your position concerning the deployment of peacekeeping forces. Are you in favor of their deployment to the Line of Contact?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - It would be wrong to take up such a complex issue now, the Karabakh issue, and discuss specific details of possible settlement. Here you need to look at all this in the chain of cause-and-effect relationship.

RBC: Then war is what remains, if you fail to find some ways to solve the problem right now, be it the recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh, the introduction of peacekeepers, the transfer of regions or some other measures.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - All these issues should be discussed during the negotiation process, which should take place in the format of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship.

RBC: Do you think that the negotiation process will resume only when Azerbaijan is weak enough to want to return to negotiations?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - If you look at it broadly, you can see that the negotiation process continues even now. Our minister is constantly in touch with the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group. As far as I know, the co-chairs keep in close touch with the Azerbaijanis, too. That is, this conversation continues. The negotiation process has never stopped and can never stop. Though, of course, it is impossible to discuss the details of the settlement in the current situation. We are in war, and the main question is how to halt it.

RBC: Were there any contacts between Yerevan and Baku during all these days of hostilities?

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan - No, of course not.