Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 15 / Trend S. Agayeva /
The so-called "elections" to the "local self-governing bodies" scheduled for September 18, 2011 by the separatist regime of Nagorno-Karabakh camouflage the annexation policy of Armenia, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported.
"The unrecognized separatist regime in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan represents nothing but an illegal structure established by the Republic of Armenia on the basis of ethnic cleansing of Azerbaijani population," the Foreign Ministry's statement said. "The so-called "elections" are conducted in order to camouflage the annexation policy of Armenia and are aimed at consolidation of the results of the continued occupation of the internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan."
According to the reports circulated by the mass media outlets of the Republic of Armenia so-called "elections" to the "local self-governing bodies" are being arranged to take place in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan on September 18, 2011.
The Republic of Azerbaijan calls upon the Armenian side to stop its destructive illegal steps, which do not have any prospects, and instead to demonstrate a good will and take a constructive position in the negotiation process in order to find a soonest and durable solution to the conflict on the basis of the norms and principles of international law, the statement said.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of Nagorno-Karabakh and its surrounding regions.