Nagorno-Karabakh conflict threatens regional security and stability : Elmar Mammadyarov
By Sara Rajabova
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister said that Azerbaijan's position on solving the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict is pretty clear and is based on the fundamental elements of international law.
"We have repeatedly underlined that the continuation of the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh threatens the security and stability of the region and beyond," Elmar Mammadyarov said in his interview to The Report Company.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since a lengthy war in the early 1990s that displaced over one million Azerbaijanis, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.
He said that the U.N. Security Council resolutions, as well as similar decisions and resolutions by other regional and international organizations such as the European Union, the NATO and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, support the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and internationally recognized borders of Azerbaijan and call for the unconditional withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from Azerbaijan's occupied territories.
The U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal have not been enforced to this day.
Mammadyarov said that peace talks have been ongoing for more than twenty years with no concrete outcome under the premises of the OSCE Minsk Group.
Peace talks, mediated by Russia, France and the U.S. through the OSCE Minsk Group, are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles. The negotiations have been largely unsuccessful so far.
Mammadyarov said Azerbaijan has shown and continues to show its commitment to the peaceful resolution of the conflict.
"However, lack of political will on the part of the Armenians has so far made it impossible to find a negotiated solution to the conflict," he said.
Mammadyarov also said that Azerbaijan is extremely concerned over the stalemate in the conflict resolution.
"Therefore, in order to reach a solution to the conflict, it is important that the international community demonstrates firmness and intensifies its efforts to accelerate the peace process," Mammadyarov said.
He said the withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from Azerbaijan's occupied territories would pave the way for a final solution to the conflict.
Mammadyarov said that Azerbaijan will continue its efforts to increase Azerbaijan's international influence.
"Our seat at the U.N. Security Council has put Azerbaijan's foreign engagement on a different level," he said.
According to Mammadyarov, the continuing occupation of around 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territories by Armenian armed forces and the efforts to bring lasting peace and prosperity to the whole region will remain as a number one priority for Azerbaijani diplomacy.
"We will redouble our efforts in reaching out to new countries and regions to raise awareness about the conflict and we will stick to our position that the Armenian armed forces must withdraw from Azerbaijan's occupied territories and almost 1 million refugees and internally displaced people should return to their place of origin," Mammadyarov said.