Statement by H.E. Mher Margaryan, Permanent Representative of Armenia to the UN, at the UN Security Council high-level open debate on “Enhancing cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations”

19 April, 2021

Mr. President,

I would like to commend the Presidency of Viet Nam for convening the open debate on the topic of “Enhancing cooperation between the United Nations and regional and sub-regional organizations in enhancing confidence-building and dialogue in conflict prevention and resolution”. The presence of the President of Viet Nam Nguyen Xuan Phuc underscores the importance, which Vietnam attaches to the theme of the Security Council meeting. I thank the UN Secretary-General António Guterres, former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and other distinguished briefers for their presentations on the contribution of the regional organizations in promoting peaceful settlement of conflicts and disputes through confidence building and risk reduction measures in cooperation with the United Nations.

Regional organizations, as regional arrangements under Chapter VIII of the UN Charter are entrusted with a crucial role of advancing peace and security and promoting conflict prevention, crisis management and conflict resolution through their unique toolbox of dialogue, mediation and confidence and security building measures.

Strengthening the cooperation between the United Nations and regional and sub-regional organizations is key for addressing challenges to security, such as use of force or threat of it in the face of destabilizing military build-up in violation of legally binding commitments in the field of arms control and involving foreign terrorist fighters and mercenaries in conflicts, committing hate crimes on ethnic and religious grounds. These challenges have been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and its humanitarian, human rights and security implications. By magnifying violence, hate speech, intolerance and discrimination, the pandemic constituted serious threat to peacebuilding gains, and risks re-instigating conflicts or fomenting new ones.

We highly value the cooperation in the framework of regional organizations, particularly within the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in promoting and facilitating dialogue, cooperation, sharing best practices and building stronger capacities to effectively address the threats to peace and security.

The OSCE with its concept of comprehensive and indivisible security, wide array of military and non-military CBMs, arms control and verification mechanisms, and tailor-made approach to conflicts through appropriate mediation formats has been called to promote peace and security in Euro-Atlantic and Eurasian region.

We will also continue to support and contribute to the regular interaction and exchanges between the United Nations and the Collective Security Treaty Organization aimed at responding to a wide range of threats and challenges, including combating drug trafficking and other forms of transnational organized crime and countering international terrorism, including the problem of travel of the foreign terrorist fighters to conflict zones.

Mr. President,

While in many parts of the world the Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire led to reducing of tensions, in our region the global crisis caused by the pandemic was instrumentalized to unleash violence, mass atrocities and destruction. The premeditated large-scale war launched by Azerbaijan in September 2020, with direct support of Turkey and involvement of foreign terrorist fighters, has been the biggest military escalation in times of pandemic.

There was no shortage of early warning signs of the long-standing objective of Azerbaijan to resolve the conflict by force. Instead of committing, in good faith, to the peace process under the auspices of the internationally mandated negotiation format of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship, Azerbaijan resorted to uncontrolled and unabated military build-up and large-scale unnotified military exercises jointly with Turkey in violation of its obligations under the CFE Treaty and Vienna Document of 2011, promoting anti-Armenian hatred and glorifying hate crime perpetrators.

Azerbaijan continuously failed to respect its obligations under the ceasefire agreements of 1994 and 1995 with Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia, rejecting proposals of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs on risk reduction and confidence-building measures, in particular establishment of an investigative mechanism into ceasefire violations, expansion of the number of international monitors and their activities, refraining from provocative actions, including the use of snipers and subversive groups and advancing positions along the Line of Contact and the state border.

Mr. President,

We value the continuous support by the United Nations to the central role of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs in addressing the consequences of the aggression against the people of Artsakh.

It is important to call for and demand full compliance by Azerbaijan with the obligations under the International humanitarian law and the Trilateral Statement of 9 November 2020, particularly with respect to immediate and unconditional return of all prisoners of war, civilian hostages and detained persons.

The consolidated engagement of internationally mandated format of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship is paramount for the comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on the basis of principles and elements developed over the years, including the equal rights and self-determination of peoples.

Thank you.

MFA RA
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