Mikoyan To Saryan: “Why Do You Need Karabakh?”

In the summer of 1965, Bagrat Ulubabyan, executive secretary of the regional branch of the Writers’ Union of the NKAO, met painter Martiros Saryan in Moscow and discussed the unfavorable situation in Artsakh.

The master, raising his hands, began to resent:

“Local famous Armenians forgot that they are Armenians. They are unsuitable nationalists. Once, I was invited to chat by Mikoyan. When left alone, I asked:

‘Anastas Ivanovich, why aren’t you giving Karabakh back to us, how long will this injustice continue?’

He answered:

‘Why do you need Karabakh? If you want people to live richly and happily, we will present you with several factories so that people can live and work. As for Karabakh… Karabakh doesn’t concern you…’”

Bagrat Ulubabyan, “Artsakh’s Struggle for Existence”, Yerevan 1994, p. 221.

Arshaluis Zurabyan