(Diario Armenia).- The Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro, published a letter sent to the Ambassador of Azerbaijan in the United States, Elin Suleymanov, in which he affirms that there is “clear evidence” of the “complete responsibility” of Azerbaijan in the “aggression and escalation of the conflict”. With this document, the OAS is positioned as the international organizations that provided one of the greatest political support to Artsakh and Armenia, Diario Armenia reported.“During the last five years, we have followed closely the unilateral arms race of your country; it was a matter of deep concern because that escalation was undoubtedly the preparation for this armed aggression launched by Azerbaijan. There is clear evidence of your full responsibility regarding the aggression and the escalation of the conflict”, said Almagro.
“A statement was made by France with evidence that Turkey sent 300 ISIS-affiliated Islamists to join Azeri military in the conflict”, he added.
“It is also alarming that the United States Defense Department has confirmed the presence of hundreds of Syrian mercenaries from Turkey to support Azerbaijan. Additionally, in the recent meeting at the summit of the Twenty-Seven in Brussels, European leaders have denounced any external interference. The proof related to the participation of the Turkish air force in the conflict is absolutely condemnable”, said the letter.
“Armenia has already expressed their willingness to accept a negotiation, it is now your responsibility towards international peace and stability to accept the same. Furthermore, the statement that you reference in your letter was issued by the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (GS/OAS), which I have the honor to lead, and stated its strong condemnation of military aggression, especially those attacks directed towards civilians, and called for cessation of hostilities. I do not see how the nature of such statement is at odds with the principles and values of the OAS, or of the United Nations system at large”, mentioned Almagro.
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“The core message of self-determination -a principle that you have decided to ignore- the peaceful resolution of conflicts -mother principle that you have decided to ignore-, and promotion of peace and stability contained in the declaration is absolutely compatible with the values and the activities of the OAS”.
“What I do consider incompatible with the principles of self-determination and peace and stability, are both the recent military attacks towards civilians in Nagorno-Karabakh and the foreign variables intervening and threatening a negotiation process. Just today the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia reported that civilian infrastructure is being targeted in Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the Armenian government, these criminal attacks against civilians were carried out by your country alongside Turkish military specialists. As we stated in our decimation on September 27, 2020, the practice of attacking civilians as military targets must be banished and constitutes a complete violation of most basic mles governing armed conflict”.
“The GS/OAS stands by its declaration regarding the recent military aggression in Nagorno-Karabakh (Reference: E-098/20) and reiterates the need to rescue and reactivate the negotiation process led by the authorities of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Minsk Group (OSCE Minsk Group). We believe that this conflict can only be solved through a negotiation process based on international law and the principles established in the Helsinki Accords”. Finally, Almagro expressed “again my sincere condolences to the victims of the violent clashes between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces”.
The Azeri complaint came after a September 27 statement in which Almagro “strongly condemned Azerbaijan’s recent military aggression in Nagorno-Karabakh, which directly ignores the calls of the United Nations to achieve peaceful solutions to the conflicts, as well as to promote lasting peace and stability”.
Luis Almagro is a great supporter of the Armenian Cause. As Foreign Minister of Uruguay, Almagro made in 2011 a historic position demanding the recognition of Nagorno Karabakh. In 2016, also as Secretary General of the OAS, he condemned Azerbaijan during the “Four Days War”. A year earlier, in 2015, as Chancellor of Uruguay he requested “recognition in the international concert of nations” of Karabakh.