Details added first version published on 18:45
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 23
Trend:
The recent appeals of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, as well as the "representative" of the illegal regime created by this country in the occupied Azerbaijani territories, again showed the true essence of Armenia, Head of the Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan Tural Ganjaliyev said, Trend reports.
Armenia again demonstrated to the world an attempt to conceal its aggressive policies under the false appearance of a “peaceful” negotiator, trying to delay the time on resolving the conflict and systematically strengthen the existing status quo based on occupation, Ganjaliyev said.
The refusal of Armenia to focus on phased solution of the conflict, which is supported by the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, undermines the negotiation process, he added.
“The Prime Minister of Armenia stated that there are no Madrid principles for Armenia. This is an open disregard for the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group. The Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan calls on the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group to express a decisive position in connection with the latest actions of Armenia, which contradict the fundamental principles of the negotiation process,” the head of the community noted.
The head of the community also brought to the attention the following position of the Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan:
“The parties to the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict are Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan are equally interested parties of the conflict, as enshrined in 1992 by the Helsinki Act of the OSCE Ministerial Council. This is once again confirmed by the meetings and statements of the OSCE Minsk Group during a visit to the region in 2019,” Ganjaliyev stressed.
Changing the format of negotiations adopted by all parties is impossible, and this attempt is a provocation and undermines the negotiation process, he said.
“Touching upon the security issue touched upon by Armenia, Ganjaliyev noted that the biggest security threat is actually the presence of the Armenian armed forces in the occupied Azerbaijani territories.
“Attempts to justify the occupation of the internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan by the "right" of self-determination are futile, they're are simply self-deception. The Armenian armed forces must leave Azerbaijani territories and the Azerbaijani population expelled from there must return to their lands, as required by the international community, international organizations, first of all, UN Security Council resolutions,” the head of the community,” the head of the community said.
“The illegal regime on the occupied lands of Azerbaijan was created by Armenia to cover up the occupation. Attitude to the latest so-called "elections" in occupied Karabakh has shown that the international community does not recognize this illegal regime. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Non-Aligned Movement, EU, NATO, individual countries have openly expressed their positions,” he noted.
“Armenia, using for the sake of its purposes, the situation that arose as a result of aggression and ethnic cleansing, refutes the existence of the Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and leaves the community’s calls for peaceful coexistence unanswered. Thus, Armenia destroys the prospect of resolving the conflict through negotiations. It is impossible to talk about security in the face of the impossibility of returning the Azerbaijani community to their homes, which is one third of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh. Therefore, one of the important security conditions is the return of the Azerbaijani community to their native lands,” Ganjaliyev said.
“The blackmail of Azerbaijan by Armenia and the illegal regime is nothing more than a simple illusion. This is proved by the counter-offensive measures carried out by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces to ensure the safety of, first of all, the civilian population living on the contact line in response to similar provocations of Armenia in April 2016,” the head of the community added.
“Continuation of the occupation by Armenia does not strengthen its security and the region, it is quite the opposite. Only Armenia is responsible for all this,” he said.
The Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan reiterates its readiness for peaceful coexistence with the Armenian community within the internationally recognized borders of Azerbaijan, Ganjaliyev concluded.
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, 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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.