“It is unfortunate that your visit to the region last year was postponed due to the war Azerbaijan unleashed against Artsakh,” the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ara Ayvazyan said during a press conference after his meeting with the current OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sweden Ann Linde.
He stated that the use of force by Azerbaijan was a gross violation of the OSCE commitments, including the Helsinki Final Act. Ara Ayvazyan added, “Throughout the war, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, with the active support of Turkey, committed blatant violations of international humanitarian law, mass atrocities such as ethnic cleansing, and war crimes against the Armenians of Artsakh, deliberately targeting civilians, including women, children, and the elderly, as well as civilian infrastructure and cultural heritage monuments.”
Ara Ayvazyan emphasized that even four months after hostilities ended, Azerbaijan continues to violate international humanitarian law and human rights by keeping Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians in captivity. The Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs condemned Turkey’s direct involvement in the Artsakh conflict by transferring armed terrorists to the conflict zone and in military operations against the Armenians of Artsakh. He said, “It was not only a violation of international law, but also a violation of OSCE commitments.”
According to the minister, Turkey set forth two dangerous precedents. He explained, “The use of force and the mass importation of armed terrorists from other regions into the OSCE zone of responsibility is a mass crime that must be unequivocally condemned.”
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According to Ara Ayvazyan, Armenia views the agreement accepted after the war as a restoration of the ceasefire and confirmation of security. At the same time, he said, “Although the document contains some provisions regarding a peaceful resolution, it does not address the key elements of that, the first of which is the status of Artsakh based on the people of Artsakh’s right to self-determination. A final political solution to the conflict is possible only within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs. Recent regional developments have undermined the need for strong co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, which will be able to lead the peace process.”
Ara Ayvazyan also said that Armenia will assume the chairmanship of the OSCE Security Cooperation Forum between April and August of 2021.
Tatev Harutyunyan
