Joint Communique on Azerbaijan’s Latest Attacks Against Artsakh
The Armenian Council of America (ACA) and the Armenian Council of Europe (ACE) call on the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group to take immediate action to stop the latest military aggression of the Azerbaijani regime against Artsakh and its peaceful civilian population.
ACA and ACE also urge the French and U.S. Administrations, as members of the OSCE Minsk Group to forcefully and unequivocally condemn the actions of the Azerbaijani regime.
Unfortunately, as many news outlets have already reported, the Azerbaijani military on Sunday acknowledged that its forces unleashed a full-scale, military offensive along the entire contact line, targeting not only the Artsakh Defense forces, but also civilian populations.
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Over the past several years, we have repeatedly raised our concerns over the disturbing increase in Azerbaijani violations of the ceasefire along the contact line with Artsakh and Armenia. In fact, after making bellicose declarations of war for many years, the Azeri forces attacked Artsakh and Armenia in 2016, and as recently as July of this year, while simultaneously pretending to participate in negotiations for peaceful resolution of the conflict within the Minsk Group framework. Yet, both U.S. and French Administrations remained silent vis a vis this blatant aggression, within and outside of the OSCE Minsk group framework and failed to condemn the Azerbaijani regime’s disregard to the international community’s goal to establish peace and stability in the region.
In order to prevent the future escalation of the conflict, the OSCE Minsk Group must forgo the standard calls for restraint on both sides and forcefully condemn the naked aggression unleashed by the Azerbaijani military, and demand Personal Representative of the Chairperson-in-Office (PRCIO) to be granted monitoring privileges along the contact line.
When and only when the Azerbaijani aggression is restrained, the OSCE Minsk Group must promote trust building measures between the two sides; a key component of which is the inclusion of the democratically elected representatives of the Artsakh Republic in the peace talks.
Armenian Council of Europe
Paris, France
Armenian Council of Europe
Washington, D.C., USA
