Interview with head of Azerbaijan-based Center for Protection of Religion and Freedom of Conscience (DEVAMM) Ilgar Ibrahimoglu.
The world religious leaders will meet in Baku in April. Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II is also expected to be invited to the summit. How do you comment on this information?
Obviously, such information would provoke debates in the local press. But I think Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II will not eventually arrive in Azerbaijan.
How do you assess activities of Karekin II in the post of Catholicos of all Armenians?
Head of the Armenian Apostolic Church has always advocated occupation policy and policy of territorial claims to neighboring states followed by Armenia and Armenians of the world. We are very mindful of the Catholicos of all Armenians’ role in stiring up the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. We recall that the former Catholicos of the Armenians Vazgen I, albeit informally, but almost immediately became one of the leaders of Karabakh movement of Armenians. For example, on Feb. 25, 1988, Vazgen I sent an open letter to Mikhail Gorbachev demanding unification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia. This position of the Armenian Apostolic Church has not changed. Only Catholicos of all Armenians has been replaced.
In other words, you believe that Karekin II, as well as subsequent Catholicos of All Armenians, will lead the policy of territorial claims to neighboring states?
Neither previous nor current Catholicos of All Armenians have made statements condemning the genocide of Azerbaijanis in Khojaly although civilians, old people and children were victims of this massacre. On backdrop of this fact and also lack of peaceful initiatives for just settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, one cannot say the Catholicos of All Armenians has changed position.
How do you explain the fact that the Armenian Apostolic Church announced Georgian authorities and the Georgian Orthodox Church responsible for collapse of the Church of St. Gevorg in Tbilisi without waiting for court decision on true causes of the incident?
There is nothing surprising about this move by the Armenian Apostolic Church which testifies my above-said statement that it has always stood at the head of policy of territorial claims to neighboring states. I say this in order to recall that the world Armenian community has very serious territorial claims against Georgia, in particular, to Javakhetiya.
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