A few days ago Azerbaijan’s First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva wrote on her Telegram page that they all had a dream to enjoy “mugham” in Artsakh. I am hereby inviting Mehriban Aliyeva to Artsakh, and she will be our guest.

Our people, the people of Artsakh know how to welcome and honor a guest: we have a well-established hospitality rule, namely to honor guests with the piece of music they like. We can let her listen to mugham, and thereby comply with her dream; she will hear her favorite mugham in Karabakh. This is an invitation, and if she accepts it, I am prepared to be hosted in Baku.
And I think that this could actually be a very high-profile way of fulfilling UN Resolution 1325. But if Mehriban Aliyeva means that their dream is to come to Artsakh for a piece of mugham through war, I can assure that her dream will never come true. Should they happen to unleash a new war, there will probably be new settlements where listening to mugham will prove an imperfect dream.If Mehriban Aliyeva states on behalf of her people that they are dreaming of enjoying mugham in Artsakh, I should reply that there is only one way to make it come true: peace, good neighborly relations with Artsakh and visits reciprocated as guests. Many nations were able to overcome wars that had lasted for several years; they managed to do away with hostility and hatred. Today they are not divided by borders and co-exist in the same economic union as best friends. This is the case with European nations; why should we not go that way? The Azerbaijani side simply has to demonstrate political will and get rid of its war obsession, realizing that it is a way to nowhere. I would like to reiterate that my invitation is seriou.

Anna Hakobyan, Wife of PM Nikol Pashinyan