Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 20
Trend:
One of the factors complicating the situation regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the presence of externally imposed obstacles for Azerbaijan’s effective activity in this direction, Novruz Mammadov, deputy head of Azerbaijani presidential administration, chief of the administration’s foreign relations department, said in an article published in “Azerbaijan” newspaper.
A part of Azerbaijan’s territories is occupied by Armenia, and the issues of the process of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict’s settlement and ensuring human rights should be considered in interrelation in Azerbaijan’s foreign policy, said the article.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Applying of international norms becomes an integral part of such a major task as ensuring the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, Novruz Mammadov said in his article.
On one hand, Azerbaijan is required to ensure the basic rights and freedoms of its population, and on the other hand, obstacles are imposed for the country’s attempts to create favorable international environment for this, according to the article.
Since Azerbaijan gained independence, the country has always witnessed creation of artificial problems, the article said.