“We must put pressure on Azerbaijan to stop the destruction of the Armenian historical and cultural heritage.” The European Parliament adopted a resolution
“We must put pressure on the Azerbaijani authorities to stop the destruction of the Armenian historical and cultural heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh,” Italian MP Fabio Castaldo said at the March 10 plenary session of the European Parliament. The third paragraph of the draft resolution on the “Destruction of cultural heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh” included in the agenda of the sitting was fully adopted, as was the first descriptive part of the resolution.
All the deputies made speeches condemning Azerbaijan, which were accompanied by applause.
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They stated that it is necessary for UNESCO to send a fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as to the territories under the control of Azerbaijan, to assess on the spot the condition of the Armenian historical and cultural heritage.
According to the majority of deputies, Azerbaijan is now committing cultural genocide; it must be held accountable. In the resolution, the European Parliament considered that “whereas 1456 monuments, mainly Armenian, came under Azerbaijan’s control after the ceasefire of 9 November 2020; whereas considerable deliberate damage was caused by Azerbaijan to Armenian cultural heritage during the 2020 war, particularly during the shelling of the Holy Saviour/Ghazanchetsots Cathedral in Shushi, as well as the destruction, changing of the function of, or damage to other churches and cemeteries during and after the conflict, such as Zoravor Surb Astvatsatsin Church near the town of Mekhakavan and St Yeghishe in Mataghis village in Nagorno-Karabakh; whereas during his visit to the 12th century Armenian Church in Tsakuri, President Aliyev vowed to remove its Armenian inscriptions.”
The resolution also considered that “whereas on 7 December 2021 the ICJ indicated in its Order that Azerbaijan ‘shall take all necessary measures to prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration affecting Armenian cultural heritage, including but not limited to churches and other places of worship, monuments, landmarks, cemeteries and artefacts.” It emphasized that “whereas cultural goods are of major cultural, artistic, historical and scientific importance and must be protected from unlawful appropriation, deterioration and destruction; whereas Armenian churches and monasteries are part of the oldest Christian heritage in the world and part of the common heritage of humanity.”
Then, the draft resolution mentioned that “whereas in the case before the ICJ, serious allegations have been made about the involvement of the authorities of Azerbaijan in the destruction of cemeteries, churches and historical monuments in Nagorno-Karabakh” and it considered that “the long-running conflict has had a catastrophic impact on the cultural heritage of Nagorno-Karabakh and the region.” It noted that “over the last 30 years, the irreversible destruction of religious and cultural heritage has been carried out by Azerbaijan, notably in Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, where 89 Armenian churches, 20,000 graves and more than 5,000 headstones have been destroyed.”
The European Parliament then passed the resolution on the “Destruction of the cultural heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh” with 635 votes in favor, 2 against, and 42 abstentions. During the discussion, the members of the European Parliament condemned Azerbaijan’s policy of eliminating Armenian cultural heritage.
According to them, “Azerbaijan is committing genocide against the Armenian cultural heritage,” “Ilham Aliyev continues the policy of Islamic states.”
One of the authors of the resolution, Peter Van Dalen, said that the fortune of the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev reaches billions, but he and his circle are deep in corruption, and he puts pressure on his political opponents. The MP warned that the lives of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh are under threat.
“Azerbaijan makes the life of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh impossible with its policy. Azerbaijan is actively destroying Armenian historical and cultural monuments, churches, and cultural heritage in general. We condemn these encroachments on Armenian cultural monuments and the Baku authorities’ hatred of Armenians. We urge UNESCO to go to Nagorno-Karabakh on a fact-finding mission to understand the seriousness of the situation. We demand justice, we are against criminal regimes.”
This speech was received with applause in the European Parliament. Kurdish MP Evin Incir stated that the historical and cultural heritage of Nagorno-Karabakh is being destroyed. She mentioned that by being a Kurd, she felt what Armenians feel today. Then she continued, “Armenian historical and cultural heritage is one of the oldest in the world, and it must be preserved. What Azerbaijan is doing is a crime against the state and the people living there. It is an attack on future generations. Thus, Azerbaijan does not respect its international obligations.”
The Kurdish MP recalled the decision of the European Court of Human Rights, by which the European Court obliges Azerbaijan to preserve the Armenian historical and cultural heritage. Then she assured, “We send a clear message to Azerbaijan that the world is following its actions and will not remain silent. The European Parliament must condemn such behavior of Azerbaijan and oblige it to fulfill its international obligations. As a member of UNESCO, Azerbaijan goes against the principles that underlie the activities of this organization. That’s enough, that’s enough.”
This speech was also received with applause. One of the deputies, Nathalie Loiseau, recalled how Azerbaijan destroyed the Armenian khachkars in the Armenian cemetery in Jugha, Nakhichevan. According to her, by not being convicted for this crime, Azerbaijan is now behaving in such a way. MP Charlie Weimers said that with these actions, Aliyev wants to destroy the historical memory and identity.
The members of the European Parliament demanded that a fact-finding mission be sent to Nagorno-Karabakh to assess the situation on the ground, and that criminal behavior such as that of Azerbaijan be clearly assessed. Many used the name “Republic of Artsakh.” MP Marina Kaljurand stated that the Karabakh conflict has not been resolved, stressing that it can be resolved only through peace and not through war.
European Commission Vice President and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Věra Jourová stressed that the European Parliament has a clear position on this issue and explained, “Armenian cultural heritage must be preserved, and democracy and sustainable development must be ensured. The war of 2020 made the situation worse in this regard. What happened should be evaluated. The European Parliament supports the visit of a UNESCO technical mission to Nagorno-Karabakh to assess the situation on the ground, and the parties should support this process. This will also contribute to the establishment of an atmosphere of mutual trust between the two sides.”
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
