OSCE Minsk Group must protest against illegal elections in Nagorno-Karabakh region

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 13

By Samir Ali – Trend:

The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group must demonstrate a decisive stance in connection with the so-called "elections to local self-government bodies" held in the occupied Azerbaijani territories, Chairman of the Azerbaijani State Committee for Affairs of Refugees and IDPs Rovshan Rzayev told reporters in Baku, Trend reports on Sept. 13.

“The co-chairs must have an unambiguous attitude towards such provocations of the Armenians,” he said.

"If any nation uses weapons against other nation, then this nation cannot determine its fate,” Rzayev said. “The whole world and all international organizations know that the Azerbaijanis who lived in Nagorno-Karabakh region were subjected to the ethnic cleansing. Presently, there is not a single Azerbaijani in Nagorno-Karabakh region. The Azerbaijanis expelled from Nagorno-Karabakh region have found refuge in Baku and 59 districts of the country. This is a well-known fact.”

“In this case, it is unacceptable for the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs to demonstrate a position which is even slightly in favor of the invaders and these provocative steps of the Armenian side,” he said. “I strongly condemn this and I expect the co-chairing countries of the OSCE Minsk Group to express their positions in connection with such actions."

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.