The ceasefire statement on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict blatantly disregards the existential security needs of Armenians
The European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD) learnt about the ceasefire statement on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict (signed on November 9) with utter shock and dismay. The agreement was signed to end an unprovoked war against the Armenian population of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh that had been unleashed by the Turkish-Azeri coalition supported by terrorist fighters.
The EAFJD categorically rejects this document for the following reasons:
1. The document does not guarantee the physical security of the indigenous Armenian population of Artsakh / Nagorno Karabakh in a sustainable manner.
2. This signed cease-fire document clearly puts the very existence of the Armenian state and hence the Armenian nation in danger: it realizes the imperialistic vision of pan-Turkism, by stipulating that the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan and hence also Turkey be directly linked to the rest of Azerbaijan, via the territory of the Republic of Armenia. This is a grave violation of the territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia, imposed by force.
3. Two out of the three co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk group, i.e. France and the US were completely sidelined and were absent from the negotiating table when the ceasefire statement was concluded. Instead, a third county that has played a destructive and destabilizing role in the conflict, including by deploying terrorist fighters, i.e. Turkey was actively involved in negotiating the document.
4. This statement was imposed in a context where the native Armenian population of Artsakh was forced to flee their ancestral homeland to avoid new massacres and war crimes, committed by the Azerbaijani-Turkish military.
5. One of the three basic principles of the OSCE Minsk Group – the principle of the right to self-determination of the people of Artsakh has been completely left out of the statement. It is a fundamental right, recognized by all parties participating at the peace negotiations mediated by the Minsk Group Co-Chairs, including by Azerbaijan.
6. The opinion of the Armenian people of Artsakh was never taken into account, whereas this statement first of all predetermines their future. The people of Artsakh have suffered the most from the consequences of the war unleashed on 27 September 2020 and the geopolitical and social isolation imposed by Azerbaijan since 1991.
7. The non-use of force, the other basic principle the Minsk process has also been completely ignored. As a matter of fact, this document was imposed to end an unprovoked war, imposed on the Armenians of Artsakh who were left alone in an unequal fight against the Azerbaijani army, supported by Turkey, NATO’s second strongest army and Syrian terrorist jihadists deployed by Ankara.
Considering that fact that a lasting peace can only be achieved by duly taking into account the security needs of the indigenous Armenian population of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh, their right to self-determination and without comprising the territorial integrity of Armenia,
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The EAFJD
– calls on France, as one of the three co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk group, to actively exercise its full role and to ensure that any agreement to resolve the conflict be concluded by fully respecting the legitimate rights, interests, security needs of the Armenian side and without compromising the territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia;
– urges the OSCE Minsk group co-Chairs to ensure that the negotiation process takes place exclusively within the framework of the official mediating format and by excluding third parties, such as Turkey which has played a destructive role in the conflict resolution.
The EAFJD calls on the European Union and its member states
– to reject the statement of November 9, since it was signed under an immense pressure on the Armenian side and by sidelining two out of three co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk group (The EU has declared its unconditional support for the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs on several occasions);
– to finally condemn the war crimes perpetrated by the Azerbaijani-Turkish military against the civilian Armenian population as documented by international organizations and media;
– to recognize the right to self-determination of the people of Nagorno Karabakh/Artsakh as the only sustainable way to ensure their security in their historic homeland;
– to send humanitarian aid to the 150,000 displaced civilians of Artsakh who found refuge in the Republic of Armenia;
– to immediately sanction Azerbaijan and Turkey for unleashing an unprovoked war and carrying out war crimes and ethnic cleansing.
The EAFJD also
– calls on Armenia to immediately withdraw its signature from the document of November 9, 2020.
– supports any peaceful actions undertaken by the people of Armenia aimed at finding democratic solutions to end the crisis.
– firmly continues its work in Europe towards defending the fundamental rights of the Armenian people of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh.
European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy