UN to discuss Karabakh Issue

[Armen]

RUSSIAN MEDIATOR SAYS UN DEBATE ON Artsax TO HURT PEACE PROCESS

 

Azad Azarbaycan TV, Baku

1 Nov 04

 

(Presenter) Baku's raising of the Nagornyy Artsax problem with the

UN is seriously disturbing the OSCE Minsk Group. The Russian

co-chairman of the Minsk Group, Yuriy Merzlyakov, openly announced

today that this initiative would deal a serious blow to the peace

process.

 

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, in turn, has said that

there is nothing extraordinary in the fact that the United Nations,

which has adopted four resolutions on Nagornyy Artsax, will

reconsider the issue.

 

(Correspondent over video footage of New York, the UN building) There

was no need for Baku to include the issue of the Nagornyy Artsax

conflict on the agenda of the UN General Assembly. This is the opinion

of the Russian co-chairman of the Minsk Group, Yuriy Merzlyakov. The

Russian diplomat has told "Son Xabar" that the opposition to the issue

by France, a country also co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group, which was

voiced during discussions at the UN, reflected not only the view of

Paris but also the positions of Washington and Moscow.

 

(Merzlyakov, captioned, shown talking to microphone) This is an

untimely step. At a time when everyone is looking forward to the

restoration of the peace process, there is no need for such an

initiative. On the other hand, the UN is not the organization to

discuss the Nagornyy Artsax conflict because the OSCE is dealing

with this problem. Therefore, the representative of France made the

statement after consultations with representatives of the USA and

Russia.

 

(Correspondent) Saying that the tabling of the issue at the UN will

fail to facilitate a solution to the Artsax conflict and that it

will actually exacerbate it even more, Merzlyakov noted that the

co-chairmen did not support Azerbaijan's suggestion and abstained from

voting on it at all. Merzlyakov explained the move by the fact that

the co-chairmen wanted to prevent a split in the UN. He added that

from a legal standpoint, this initiative of Azerbaijan was

ineffective, too.

 

(Merzlyakov) Resolutions of the UN General Assembly are not the same

as resolutions of the UN Security Council. Resolutions of the General

Assembly are of a consultative nature.

 

(Correspondent) The spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry,

Matin Mirza, does not agree with the Russian diplomat. He says that by

having adopted four resolutions on the Nagornyy Artsax conflict, the

UN actually intervened in the process of settlement. Therefore, there

is nothing out of the ordinary in bringing the issue to its attention

again.

 

Matin Mirza added that the fact that 43 out of 143 countries that took

part in the discussion supported Azerbaijan's suggestion and 99

abstained from voting suggests that these countries are beginning to

develop an objective opinion about the conflict.

 

Qalib Sukurov, "Son Xabar".

[Armen]

ITAR-TASS News Agency

TASS

November 1, 2004 Monday

 

Nagorno-Artsax settlement must be in OSCE framework

 

By Vitaly Kuchkin

 

MOSCOW

 

The suggestion to debate the Nagorno-Artsax settlement at the session

of the United Nations General Assembly parallel with the discussion in

the OSCE framework "can hardly have a beneficial effect on the

negotiating process", the Russian Foreign Ministry stated on Monday.

The ministry commented on Russia's stand regarding the suggestion to

put on the agenda of the session the clause on "the situation in the

occupied territories of Azerbaijan".

 

"Russia, just as other co-chairmen of the MInsk group of the OSCE,

abstained from the voting", the ministry pointed out. "The results of

the voting showed that most members of the world community share this

stand". "Russia is interested in the early settlement of the

Nagorno-Artsax problem and promotes this in every way, be it in the

bilateral respect or as the co-chairman of the Minsk group of the

OSCE", the ministry noted. "The group's format permits it to deal with

any problems related to the conflict and to ensuring peace", the

ministry believes. "Besides, the recent meeting of the presidents of

Azerbaijan and Armenia opened prospects for the resumption of the talks

on the quest of the mutually-acceptable solution".

[Armen]

http://www.azg.am/?lang=AR&num=2004110301

[Armen]

ArmenPress

Nov. 5, 2004

 

US DISAPPROVES OF AZERBAIJAN'S MOTION

 

BAKU, NOVEMBER 5, ARMENPRESS: The US ambassador in Azerbaijan, Rino

Harnish, said his government disapproves Azerbaijan's initiative to

include an item on the occupied Azerbaijan territories on the UN

General Assembly's session. "The official Washington is against this

idea," the ambassador was quoted as saying by ATV television.

He said the US sees a solution to the Karabagh conflict through

regular peaceful talks between the parties. The ambassador also said

the official Baku has to make a concrete decision concerning the

participation of Armenian parliament members in a NATO seminar in Baku,

adding that Azerbaijan's failure to do so would mean its failure to

respect the principle of inclusiveness.

[Armen]

http://www.azg.am/?lang=AR&num=2004111901

 

This is an article on discussions on Karabagh in the Parliamentry Assembly of European Counsil. As always British reporters on Karabagh in the Assembly like Terry Devis or David Atkison crafted anti-Armenian documents.

[Siamanto]

http://capwiz.com/anca/mail/oneclick_compo...alertid=6691121

 

Block Azeri Bid to Derail Karabagh Peace Process

Critical UN Vote to Take Place as Early as Wednesday, 11/24

In recent weeks, the Azerbaijani government - consistent with its repeated threats of renewed aggression - has introduced a divisive resolution that threatens to undermine the Nagorno Karabagh peace process. This reckless effort to manipulate the conflict is already fostering heightened tensions, fragmented the OSCE negotiations, and put at risk ten year's worth of progress at the peace table.

 

The OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs have criticized Azerbaijan's resolution, noting that "introducing this issue to the United Nations General Assembly may have two negative consequences. In light of the situation we have outlined, this will be detrimental to the efforts to find a just and lasting settlement of the issue, particularly at this time. Secondly, it will fail to achieve consensus, a situation that will not be helpful. We advise avoiding this situation." Despite these efforts, on October 29th, the UN General Assembly voted in support of the request opening the door to a full floor vote on the resolution as early as Wednesday, November 24th.

 

Please send a free ANCA WebFax to Secretary of State Colin Powell and U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. John Danforth to VOTE NO on Azerbaijan's destructive resolution. Simply fill in your contact information below and click "Send."

 

 

Your Message

This system requires that you provide your name and contact information. This information will not be used for any purpose other than to identify you to the recipient.

Subject:

Block Azeri Bid to Derail Karabagh Peace Process

Required text: This text will be included in your message.

I am writing, in the interest of regional stability in the Caucasus and the integrity of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group peace process, to urge the Department of State to oppose Azerbaijan's efforts to use a United Nations resolution to manipulate the Nagorno Artsax conflict.

 

Azerbaijan's introduction of this ill-advised and disruptive resolution undermines both the principles and procedures of the OSCE negotiations, fostering unnecessary divisiveness and ultimately setting back the cause of peace. This resolution works at cross-purposes to America's interests, which are best served by continued dialogue. In fact, the only interests served by Azerbaijan's resolution will be those of hardliners in Baku who seek the fragmentation of the OSCE framework, the unraveling of ten year's worth of negotiations, and the resumption of hostilities in the region. Sadly - but not surprisingly - the senior Azerbaijani leadership has made no secret of its intentions, issuing repeated public threats to attack Nagorno Karabagh and "solve" this conflict through force.

 

The United States, as a co-chair of the Minsk Group and an honest broker to the negotiating process, should strenuously and publicly oppose this measure at every stage.

 

Thank you for your consideration of my concerns. I will be closely following developments at the United Nations on this matter and look forward to seeing my government act responsibly on this important issue.

[Armen]

The recent activisation in Caucasus is another step in the bigger plan. Watch for:

 

- UN resolution on Karabagh

- Elections in Ukraine

- Ramil Safarov's Trial

- Events arround Iran

- Turkey's EU accession

 

These are all components of a bigger picture I think...

[shaunt]

I don't know Armen. It was a handful of Islamic countries (mainly) that supported the UN resolution on Artsakh

[Armen]

Shaunt, Azeries didn't put it for voting. They new it wouldn't pass. But it can come back any moment because of the other factors I mentioned.

[Siamanto]

Azerbaijan-proposed draft UN resolution on Artsax - full text

 

ANS TV, Baku

24 Nov 04

 

Presenter Here is the full text of a draft resolution submitted by

Baku to the 59th session of the UN General Assembly.

 

Correspondent, over archive footage of the UN The draft resolution

entitled "The situation on Azerbaijan's occupied territories" reads:

 

Based on the UN goals, principles and terms;

 

confirming the principle of respect for any state's sovereignty and

territorial integrity, security of internationally-recognized borders;

 

preventing the use of force for seizing territories and confirming

international humanitarian law and principles, especially the 1949

Geneva Convention and protocols amended to it;

 

confirming international human rights standards;

 

referring to the Security Council's resolutions Nos 822, 853, 874 and

884, as well as referring to resolution No 48/114 entitled "Emergency

international aid to refugees and displaced persons in Azerbaijan";

 

expressing serious concern about the continuation of the occupation

of Azerbaijani territories, the current situation on Azerbaijan's

occupied territories and its negative impact on attempts to reach

peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan;

 

being seriously concerned about reports on resettlement on Azerbaijan's

occupied territories whereas the entire local population has been

evicted from there;

 

emphasizing that the moves of this type, as well as misappropriation

of lands and property, other illegal moves on Azerbaijan's occupied

territories, is in violation of international human rights, especially

the Geneva Convention on protection of civilian population during

the war dated 12 August 1949;

 

advising the OSCE Minsk Group to boost efforts to find a speedy and

lasting settlement to the conflict in the Azerbaijani Republic's

Nagornyy Artsax region;

 

and welcoming the efforts by the Council of Europe, the EU and the

Organization of the Islamic Conference in this direction, the General

Assembly:

 

1. once again announces its unchangeable support to the Azerbaijani

Republic's sovereignty and territorial integrity;

 

2. strongly calls on the conflicting parties to make efforts for the

peaceful settlement of the conflict in the Azerbaijani Republic's

Nagornyy Artsax region and around it within international norms

and legal principles;

 

3. confirms the right of refugees and displaced persons from the

conflict area to voluntarily return to native lands on decent terms

with the help of the international community;

 

4. strongly calls on the conflicting parties to seriously observe

and respect international human rights norms;

 

5. notes inadmissibility of accepting the legality of any moves to

formalize neither the current situation nor the status quo occupation

of Azerbaijan's territories;

 

6. emphasizes that resettlement or similar moves on the occupied

territories are illegal and in violation of international law,

especially international human rights, and stresses the importance

of immediately putting an end to all these actions and restoring the

status quo;

 

7. proposes that the OSCE urgently send a multinational fact-finding

mission consisting of relevant experts from the member countries

to conduct an investigation and submit a report on all aspects of

the situation on Azerbaijan's occupied territories and asks for the

necessary help in this from the secretary-general, if needed;

 

8. asks the secretary-general to submit a detailed report on the

fulfilment of this resolution at the General Assembly's 60th session;

 

9. makes a decision to include the issue of the situation on

Azerbaijan's occupied territories on the agenda of the 60th session.

 

 

http://groong.usc.edu/news/msg97706.html

[Siamanto]

Vardan Oskanian: Azerbaijan Should Concentrate On Processes Within Framework Of Minsk Group

 

Noyan Tapan

 

YEREVAN, 24.11.04. Armenia's position regarding putting the issue of

"occupied" territories of Azerbaijan to the agenda of the UN General

Assembly sitting on the demand of the latter is clear enough, this

step taken by Azerbaijan is wrong and they will understand this in

the future. Vardan Oskanian, RA Foreign Minister, declared this

during the November 23 press conference.

 

According to him, Armenia isn"t anxious about the issue of adoption

of the resolution connected with the above-mentioned territories. "We

are anxious about the political process around the issue of

settlement of Artsax conflict. If such a resolution passes in UN

Armenia can"t continue bilateral negotiations with Azerbaijan any

longer."

 

The Minister mentioned that if after the adoption of the resolution

in UN Azerbaijan is ready to hold negotiations with Nagorno Artsax,

Armenia will continue participating in the negotiations, but

Azerbaijan should hold the main negotiations with the Nagorno

Artsax authorities.

 

As for the possibility of adoption of such a resolution, Vardan

Oskanian mentioned that judging by the UN site, only Turkey has been

supporting Azerbaijan by now. "I think this is significant, we should

wait for the results."

 

According to him, Azerbaijan mainly accentuates the issue of

settlement of the so-called "occupied territories."But neither

Armenia nor Nagorno Artsax have any problem with a mission of the

observer. "Azerbaijan itself hampered implementation of such

missions. Today Armenia has no such problem, on the contrary, we have

always invited the international community to come and estimate the

situation on the spot. Such a mission is also beneficial for us,

Armenians, in order that we should straightly raise the questions of

residents of Shahumian, Getashen, as some of them are forced to live

in these territories at present."

 

Meanwhile, as Vardan Oskanian emphasized. the very Minsk Group has

the corresponding mandate for holding such a monitoring and Armenia

and Nagorno Artsax are ready to assist to implementation of such a

mission within the framework of this group. "But it's not up to UN to

decide the issue of the mission."

 

According to the Minister, if Azerbaijan seriously treats the issue

if negotiations and wants to achieve positive results it should

refuse of such accents and concentrate on the processes taking place

within the framework of the Minsk Group.

 

 

http://groong.usc.edu/news/msg97677.html

[Siamanto]

UN turns down Azerbaijan-proposed resolution on Artsax - Armenian TV

 

Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan

24 Nov 04

 

The UN General Assembly did not hold discussions on a special

resolution on the situation on the occupied territories [Nagornyy

Artsax]. International news agencies are describing the developments

in the UN as the failure of Azerbaijani diplomacy.

 

Armen Martirosyan, Armenia's permanent representative in the UN, told

a UN General Assembly session that Azerbaijan, which has initiated the

draft resolution concerning human rights and norms of international

law, itself does not keep to these values. The Armenian representative

stressed once again that Nagornyy Artsax has never been part of

independent Azerbaijan and that the Artsakh [Artsax] people exercised

their right to live independently and safely on their own land.

 

Armen Martirosyan noted that the Azerbaijani sides' resolution includes

selectively references to the UN's basic concepts. The document says

nothing about people's right to self-determination.

 

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov noted that the UN

General Assembly discussed the same issue 11 years ago and expressed

support to the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group to settle the conflict,

but these efforts have yielded no result.

 

Speaking on behalf of the Minsk Group, which includes the USA, France

and Russia, US ambassador (?Susan Moore) said that talks on the

Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict settlement within the framework of the

Minsk Group had yielded positive results. Moore said that progress in

the peaceful negotiations could be reached only by building confidence

between the conflicting sides.

 

http://groong.usc.edu/news/msg97668.html

[Siamanto]

UN DISCUSSING SITUATION IN THE AZERBAIJANI OCCUPIED TERRITORIES

 

A1+

24-11-2004

 

The UN General Assembly met on November 23-th morning to conclude

debate on the outcome of the Millennium Summit and of the other major

United Nations conferences and summits in the economic, social and

related fields.

 

The Assembly was also expected to consider a draft resolution on

the situation in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan (document

A/59/L.32), by which it would urge the parties to the conflict

involving the Nagorno-Artsax region to continue seeking a peaceful

settlement based on relevant norms and principles of international

law. It would also reaffirm the right of return to refugees and

internally displaced persons while strongly appealing to the parties

in conflict to respect the rules of international humanitarian law.

 

In addition, the Assembly would stress that any actions to consolidate

the status quo of occupation was legally invalid and that actions

such as the transfer of settlers into the occupied territories were

illegal under international law and must be reversed immediately. It

would also invite the Organization for Security and Cooperation

in Europe (OSCE) to urgently dispatch a multinational fact-finding

mission to inquire into and report on all aspects of the situation

in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. Further, the Assembly

would request the Secretary-General to report on the situation at

the Assemblyâ~@~Ys sixtieth session, and would decide to include

the item on the provisional agenda of that session.

 

 

 

Situation in Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan

 

ELMAR MAMMADYAROV, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan,

introduced the relevant draft resolution, saying that 11 years

ago, the Assembly had considered the issue of the occupation of

the territories of his country, and had expressed support for the

efforts of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe

(OSCE)-led Minsk Group (Co-Chaired by France, United States and the

Russian Federation), aimed at settling the conflict in accordance

with the norms and principles of international law. Since then,

the OSCE-led negotiations had yielded both successes and failures,

and a host of Security Council resolutions adopted in response to the

occupation of Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys territories remained the principle

basis for settlement of the conflict with Armenia.

 

The Assembly, he continued, had previously contributed to alleviation

of the acute humanitarian situation in his country through its adoption

of its resolution 48/114 on emergency international assistance to

refugees and displaced persons in Azerbaijan. The occupation of a

significant part of Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys territories and the resultant

heavy humanitarian burden had obviously made Azerbaijan the country

most interested in bringing about an effective peace as soon as

possible. Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys consistent adherence to a ceasefire over

the past decade had demonstrated that it preferred peaceful settlement

of the conflict for the benefit of the entire region.

 

He went on to detail the Minsk Group negotiations on the matter,

taking place on various fronts and led by the Foreign Ministers of both

Azerbaijan and Armenia. During those talks, Azerbaijan became concerned

at credible information concerning increased transfer of settlers

to the occupied territories of Azerbaijan â~@~S- from which 750,000

Azerbaijanis had been expelled. Although similar sporadic incidents

had been registered in the past, those most recent large-scale and

organized transfers were being administered through an official

programme of Armenia called â~@~\Return to Artsaxâ~@~]. That

programme was steered by Armeniaâ~@~Ys Department of Refugees and

Migrants and was primarily financed through a budget specifically

allocated for the separatist Nagorno-Artsax regime.

 

The most disturbing situation had arisen in the Lachin district,

which was populated by Azerbaijanis prior to the conflict. Following

the implementation of the settlement programme, that region was now

inhabited by some 13,000 Armenians, he said. Under one aspect of the

programme, Armenia renamed Azerbaijani towns -- erasing their original

identities -- in the occupied territories. For the establishment of

those settlements, the Armenian Government mobilized its armed forces

deployed in the occupied territories. Those forces had participated

in the establishment of two new settlements in the Kelbadjar region,

he added.

 

He went on to cite a number of official international sources that

had confirmed the transfer of settlers, noting that an OSCE official

had recently referred to the programme, which envisaged a two-fold

increase in the Armenian population in the occupied territories. In

addition, Armenia also consolidated its occupation of the Azerbaijani

territories through economic and financial policies. Indeed, the

banking system of the puppet regime established in the territories

was regulated by the Central Bank of Armenia.

 

Illegal settlement policies and practices carried out by Armenia were

clearly in violation of Security Council resolutions and international

humanitarian law, particularly the Geneva Conventions, he said. Such

actions also ran counter to efforts aimed at a political settlement

of the conflict, undermined the credibility of the OSCE mediation

efforts, and were obviously aimed a prejudicing their outcome and

imposing a fait accompli on Azerbaijan. Although Armenia confirmed the

political will to settle the situation peacefully by its statements,

it continued to aggressively challenge Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys territorial

integrity and sovereignty. Examining the entire chain of events, one

could conclude that, acting with impunity, Armenia was in the final

stages of implementing its heretofore camouflaged goal: to realize

its territorial claims over Azerbaijan.

 

As the situation continued to worsen, Azerbaijan had been forced

to request the Assembly to take up the matter. The draft under

consideration today was aimed at creating favourable conditions for

continuing negotiations. â~@~\By doing this, we do not intend to solve

the problems of political settlement of the conflict in the United

Nations,â~@~] he said, adding that neither was Azerbaijan attempting

to engage the Assembly in conflict resolution issues. The matter, he

stressed, concerned a problem that was impeding the process of peace

negotiations, and which, if continued, could lead to a humanitarian

disaster.

 

He said the text was balanced and constructive and was based on the

principles of international humanitarian law and relevant provisions

of Security Council resolutions. It would have the Assembly give

its strong support for the OSCE mediation efforts and contained

concrete provisions aimed at addressing the impediments to peaceful

settlement of the conflict. The negotiations were now at a critical

juncture, he said, and prompt and adequate measures were needed from

everyone. Armenia must take immediate, unconditional and effective

measures to cease and reverse the transfer of settlers to the occupied

territories of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan would continue to undertake

all possible diplomatic measures to stop the dangerous developments

in the occupied territories of its country.

 

ALTAY CENGIZER (Turkey) said his country had been unwavering in

its support for a just and lasting solution to the Nagorno-Artsax

conflict, based on international law, the territorial integrity of

Azerbaijan and relevant Security Council resolutions. It had actively

supported every initiative geared towards peace that had come forth

from the OSCE Minsk Group, and encouraged all the parties concerned

to facilitate the work of that Group. It was unfortunate that the

Nagorno-Artsax conflict was still an obstacle to lasting peace,

stability and regional cooperation in the southern Caucuses.

 

Todayâ~@~Ys debate, he said, was neither an attempt to hamper or

replicate the OSCEâ~@~Ys Minsk process, which was the platform to

address the issue. On the contrary, it was a call to support that

very process. The Assembly should recognize todayâ~@~Ys debate for

what it was: a cry out of frustration for years of despondency that

had to be endured each day for more than a decade by those directly

affected by the results of the prolonged conflict. â~@~\Hence, it is

time for the international community to see the dangers of prolonged

human suffering, and the perils inherent in allowing conflicts to

festerâ~@~], he said.

 

â~@~\We have seen...how problems, which were left to linger on,

eventually come back to haunt all of us, and how people locked in

protracted conflict situations, left solely to their own devices,

failed alas to attain peaceâ~@~], he said. It was based on that

understanding that Turkey voiced its support for the dispatch

of a multinational OSCE fact-finding mission that would report

on all aspects of the situation in the occupied territories of

Azerbaijan. That would have a constructive impact on the efforts of

the Minsk Group.

 

ARMEN MARTIROSYAN (Armenia) said that, about a month ago, a process

had started in the Assembly to discuss concerns over the situation in

the so-called occupied territories of Azerbaijan. That had been done

under the guise of â~@~\urgency â~@~], using loopholes, and had

not been based on any substantiation of the argumentsâ~@~Y supposed

â~@~\urgencyâ~@~] by providing any factually correct information. The

inclusion of a new agenda item on the matter did not enjoy the support

of an overwhelming majority of the Assembly and was opposed by the

Minsk Group Co-Chairs, who had been dealing with the conflict in

and around Nagorno-Artsax for 12 years now. They had unequivocally

stated that the move did not meet the required criteria of urgency

and importance, and was counterproductive as well.

 

At that time, some countries, while supporting Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys

motion, expressed their sensitivities arising from the alleged

â~@~\transfer of settlers into the occupied territoriesâ~@~]. Armenia

had clearly stated then and would reiterate today that there was no

official policy of settlement being carried out, and that neither

was there any official document or report of any kind confirming

Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys allegations. Armenia strongly opposed the Azerbaijani

initiative, since the existing mechanisms within the OSCE could

fully and effectively address all Azerbaijanâ~@~Ys concerns. But

in a constructive manner, the Armenian Government, nevertheless,

decided, in order to put all concerns to rest, to suggest facilitating

a fact-finding team within the Minsk Group framework to assess the

situation. â~@~\Letâ~@~Ys see how Azerbaijan tries to address its

own concernsâ~@~], he added.

 

He said that, although presenting the draft under consideration

as a balanced document that did not interfere in the Minsk Group

mediation, Azerbaijan had attempted to give one-sided answers to almost

all the elements of the negotiation package, namely the status of

Nagorno-Artsax, the issues of Azerbaijani refugees and internally

displaced persons and the territories themselves. Azerbaijan also

tried to present its resolution from the perspective of human rights

and humanitarian law, he said.

 

â~@~\A country which has violated these laws in the first place

with meticulously planned and systematically carried out massacres

of Armenians in its capital Baku, cities of Sumgait and Kirovabad

(Ganja) from 1988 to 1990 during peacetime, tries to cloak its own

actions by selectively applying international humanitarian lawâ~@~],

he said of Azerbaijan. It limits the application of the return of

refugees to â~@~\the area of conflictâ~@~] and to ethnic Azeris only,

conveniently leaving out the rights of over 400,000 Armenians under

the same laws, particularly those from the immediate conflict zone

from Shahumain, Getashen and northern Martakert. Their homes today

were fully confiscated and populated by ethnic Azeris, he said.

 

Despite its continued calls for the observance of humanitarian

law, it was Azerbaijan that consistently hindered any kind of

international involvement or operation in Nagorno-Artsax, thus

violating those laws, as well as relevant Security Council resolutions,

he continued. Azerbaijan also spotlighted Nagorno-Artsax as being an

alleged safe haven for all possible sorts of ills, yet when authorities

there and Armenia invited international fact-finding teams to verify

the nature of those allegations, Azerbaijan had created all kinds of

obstacles, hindering the missionâ~@~Ys dispatch.

 

In addition, Azerbaijan also tried to formalize its totally baseless

allegations by misrepresenting the tenor of Security Council

resolutions and selective interpretation of international laws. It

avoided mentioning one major international legal principle in the

current resolution: the right of peoples to self-determination. That,

despite the fact that the exercise of that right was at the core of

the Nagorno-Artsax conflict. Further, Azerbaijan â~@~\conveniently

forgetsâ~@~] that the Council resolutions mentioned â~@~\local

Armenian forcesâ~@~] and called for unimpeded access for international

relief efforts, and restoration of economic, transport and energy

links to the region. Indeed, Azerbaijan had never implemented those

particular provisions of the Council resolutions it so frequently

mentioned.

 

With the resolution under consideration today, Azerbaijan tried

to dissect the so-called occupied territories from the package

of negotiations, he said. However, it failed to admit that

those territories had come under the control of Nagorno-Artsax

Armenians as a result of the war unleashed by Azerbaijan in an

attempt to stifle the peaceful drive of the people of that region for

self-determination. Given the military suppression in the region in

the very recent past and the war mongering rhetoric of the Azerbaijani

leadership, the issue of those territories could not be resolved

unless there was a resolution on the status of Nagorno-Artsax,

and security guarantees were provided.

 

He said that Nagorno-Artsax had never been a part of an independent

Azerbaijan. The people of Nagorno-Artsax had proven their right to

live freely and securely on their own territory both legally â~@~S-

through a referendum conducted in 1991 â~@~S- and by defending that

right in a war unleashed against them by Azerbaijan. While peace

should be achieved first and foremost between Nagorno-Artsax and

Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan was not interested in the peaceful resolution

of the conflict. It had rejected or walked out on every single

peace proposal made by the Minsk Group. The present motion aimed

at further torpedoing those ongoing negotiations and in diverting

the international communityâ~@~Ys efforts into parallel processes,

which would allow it to manoeuvre between them without committing to

a final settlement of the conflict.

 

SUSAN MOORE (United States), speaking on behalf of the co-Chairs of

the OSCEâ~@~Y s Minsk Group (United States, France and the Russian

Federation), said the issue before the Assembly was one in which the

OSCE and the Minsk Group had been actively involved in, with a view

to finding a lasting solution to the situation prevailing in the

occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The Minsk process had already

produced positive results. It had made proposals to the parties and

was now awaiting a response to those proposals before proceeding to

the next stage.

 

In that light, she welcomed the efforts of the international community,

through the Assembly, noting that any actions taken by that body

and others were helpful and, therefore, welcome. Stressing that no

efforts should be spared in the search for a peaceful resolution of

the problem, she said serious consideration should be given to the

dispatching of a fact-finding mission, and urged the parties to take

necessary steps to facilitate the OSCEâ~@~Ys efforts.

 

MASOOD KHALID (Pakistan) said his country supported all the efforts

to peacefully resolve the conflict surrounding the Nagorno-Artsax

issue and attached great importance to all the initiatives of the

OSCE Minsk Group, the Organization of Islamic Conference and others

who were seeking to advance the peace process. The best path to

be pursued was through peaceful dialogue with the support of the

international community.

 

Action on Draft The Assembly was then informed that action on the

draft resolution on the situation in the occupied territories of

Azerbaijan would be taken at a later date.

 

 

http://groong.usc.edu/news/msg97667.html