he EAFJD and its committees express full support for the position of the factions of the National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh of 19.04.2023 regarding the inadmissibility of statements, questioning the de facto status of the Republic Artsakh.
No one has the right to take any decision which can in any way endanger the right of the people of Artsakh to live as a free people and in safety in their own homeland.
The right to self-determination of the native Armenian population of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh equals to nothing less than their existential right to live in their homeland of millennia, namely Nagorno Karabakh in safety and in dignity.
The Azerbaijani policy towards the Armenian people of Artsakh is undoubtedly that of ethnic cleansing and depopulation. Taking one’s decisions without duly considering this crucial factor is unacceptable, criminal or delusional at best.
Read the full English translation of the statement below:
STATEMENT OF THE FACTIONS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH/NAGORNO KARABAKH
19 April 2023: Regarding the inadmissibility of statements questioning the de facto status of the Republic of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh.
The factions of the National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh reaffirm the decision of the National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh of 14 April 2022, that “no authority, has the right to agree to an unacceptable status for Artsakh or “lower the bar” on self-determination – an internationally recognized right under the pretext of “peace”.
The people of Artsakh made the decision on self-determination and de facto implemented it in their historical cradle for more than three decades, unequivocally and in accordance with the provisions of the ex-USSR legislation, as well as in accordance with the requirements of the universal norms of international law, guided exclusively by the principles of democracy. The right to self-determination of the people of Artsakh is thus not subject to negotiation.
Despite the efforts of the international community to establish stable peace in the region and supposedly to settle the Nagorno Karabakh conflict through the Stepanakert-Baku negotiations, the latest statements of the leader of Azerbaijan containing threats prove that the military-political leadership of Azerbaijan has genocidal ambitions against the people of Artsakh. By ignoring the calls and decisions of international organizations/structures, Azerbaijan strives to achieve its main goal, i.e. – to depopulate Artsakh once and for all.
We consider the opinion of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia which he expressed at the plenary session of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia on April 18 and according to which Armenia fully recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, unacceptable. He tries to justify the above-mentioned statement by singling out just one point of the 2022 Madrid working document and making a reference to the agreements reached during the famous meetings held in Prague and Sochi in October, as well as based on the Alma-Ata Agreement of December 21, 1991. Nevertheless, Pashinyan fails to mention that the Republic of Armenia accepted this document with fundamental reservations related to the status of Nagorno Karabakh.
Thus, the leadership of the Republic of Armenia separates the issue of ensuring the security of the people of Artsakh from their right to self-determination, disregarding the crucial significance of the latter for the security. This stance is in fact in line with the official position of Baku and consequently contributes to the strengthening of Azerbaijan’s blatant and aggressive ambitions towards the territories of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia.
We hereby appeal on behalf of the people of the Republic of Artsakh:
• To the authorities of the Republic of Armenia: We urge you not to deviate from the 8 July directive of the 1992 Resolution of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia. At the same time, we draw your attention to the predictable prospect that the danger hanging over Artsakh’s statehood is also a destructive threat to the statehood of Armenia.
• To Armenian Diaspora: We urge you to support the unrelenting struggle of our people. Taking into account that the Republic of Artsakh has been under siege for about 130 days, we call on you to unite our nationwide potential at all costs, with collective and determined efforts.
• To the Russian Federation: We ask to take diplomatic and military-political measures while carrying out the peacekeeping mission which is highly important for us and not to allow the people of Artsakh to finds itself under the threat of danger, regardless of the current geopolitical developments.
• To the international community: we ask not to be limited to declarations of sympathy for more than 120,000 civilians of the de facto Republic of Artsakh blockaded by the Republic of Azerbaijan, and to resort to practical measures stipulated by international legal norms.
• To the leaders of the co-chair countries of the OSCE Minsk Group: regardless of possible differences between them, we urge to make efforts to resume the negotiations on the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict within the framework of the soul format with an international mandate.
Stepanakert
19.04.2023
