Azerbaijan reacts to statement of CSTO secretary general on Karabakh conflict
By Trend
Making a statement by the CSTO secretary general on the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict goes beyond the organization's mandate, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan said in a statement.
"The CSTO secretary general, abusing his official powers, made a statement on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which goes beyond the mandate of the organization. The statement of the secretary general, who is a citizen of Armenia, is subjective and biased, and, with the exception of Armenia, contradicts the position of the member states of the organization on this conflict," said the message.
"The secretary general of the organization conceals the fact of constant firing at the territory of Azerbaijan from various types of weapons by the armed forces of Armenia along the borders of the two countries, in particular civilian persons and objects. We recommend the secretary general, who declares the harmfulness of military rhetoric, to get familiarized with the absurd and conflicting statements made by the Prime Minister of Armenia, which serve the aggravation and disruption of the process of negotiations", the Foreign Ministry said in a message.
The cause of tension on the line of contact between the troops of Azerbaijan and Armenia and along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border is the continuation of the occupation of the territories of Azerbaijan and the illegal presence of Armenian troops in the occupied territories, the message says.
"In accordance with the first paragraph of the Collective Security Treaty, updated on December 10, 2010, which forms the international legal basis of the CSTO, the member states reaffirmed their obligations not to use force, or to avoid the threat of use of force in inter-state relations," the statement reads.
The Foreign Ministry said that the military aggression and aggressive policy of the CSTO member state against Azerbaijan also contradicts the legal documents that form the basis of the organization.
"If the CSTO secretary general is really interested in eliminating the tension, he should demand to withdraw the troops of the member state Armenia from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan in accordance with the UN Security Council’s resolutions," the Foreign Ministry said.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
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