UNGA 73 General Debate/Statement by the delegation of Armenia in the exercise of the right of reply

01 October, 2018

Madam President,

The delegation of Armenia has requested the floor in the exercise of the right of reply to the statement made by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan on Friday. We note that a substantial portion of this statement makes references to Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh, with lopsided interpretations of international law and selective references to the UN Charter.

Azerbaijan continues to refer to the right of return for the refugees to their homes, consistent in their choices of turning a deaf ear to the fact that any arrangement for the return of refugees to the places of their former residence requires a comprehensive approach. The provision for the return of refugees, along with other elements, most notably the full recognition of the realization of the right to self-determination, is among the basic principles for a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict which Azerbaijan has so far chosen to disregard.

Azerbaijan has been remarkably consistent in making selective references to the provisions of the four Security Council resolutions adopted in 1993. Those four resolutions urge for the cessation of the hostilities, opening of communications and resumption of peace negotiations with all parties concerned, including the Nagorno Karabakh. However, to each of these resolutions in 1993, Azerbaijan responded with intensification of its military offensives.

Explicit in its ambition to seek a military solution to the conflict, Azerbaijan has been incrementally raising the tensions in the region, as demonstrated by a large- scale aggression against the people of Nagorno Karabakh in April 2016, in violation of the Trilateral Ceasefire Agreement of 1994 and the Trilateral Agreement on the Consolidation of Ceasefire of 1995. The escalation by Azerbaijan in 2016 followed the logic of the long-standing policy of incitement to hatred against Armenians at the highest level, which led to extreme radicalization of the society in Azerbaijan, including amongst the youth.

Madam President,

The Nagorno Karabakh conflict erupted as a result of denial of one of the fundamental human rights: the rights of people to self-determination. It is about the right of people to choose their own destiny, to decide the form of governance in their own homeland. The people of Nagorno Karabakh had to defend themselves from extermination. They succeeded in doing so without any international intervention.

Armenia has declared unequivocally its adherence to the peaceful negotiations under the auspices of OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs to find a lasting and comprehensive solution to the conflict.

We hope that Azerbaijan invests efforts in promoting culture of peace, good neighborly relations, democracy and human rights. It is in this context that Armenia urges Azerbaijan to take genuine steps towards ending persisting war mongering, hate speech and intolerance, and to commit, in good faith, to the implementation of the agreements reached in course of negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship.

I thank you, Madam President.

MFA RA
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