Azerbaijan, Baku, 15 May / corr Trend S.Agayeva / The preservation of cultural heritage of Azerbaijan, left in the Armenian-occupied territory, is of great importance, but at the same time a very difficult and delicate issue.
"UNESCO is not involved in the issues of political character and this issue is not a part of our mission. However, UNESCO is very much concerned about the situation for preservation of the heritage," Koichiro Matsuura, the UNESCO Director General said on 15 May.
"I am really disappointed that UNESCO cannot influence on such issues, or even interfere," he said. The issue is under UN's competence.
The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since 1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20% of Azerbaijan including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts. In 1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which time the active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group ( Russia, France, and the US) are currently holding peaceful negotiations.
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