FM: Armenia cannot ensure country’s sustainable development
By Abdul Kerimkhanov
Military conflict with Azerbaijan and economic isolation due to the occupation policy towards Baku hinder the development of Armenia.
Armenia will not be able to ensure sustainable development of the country and somehow get closer to the Sustainable Development Goals indicators, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said at the 5th World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue in Baku on May 3.
He added that to a certain extent, people in Armenia hope and count on the Armenian diaspora’s support.
Mammadyarov noted that ensuring international security in a rapidly changing world, in conditions where there is an increase in terrorism, external threats and conflicts, is the most important task for which regional states and international organizations, including the UN Security Council, are making their efforts.
He noted that unresolved long-lasting conflicts remain the main challenges that hinder the preservation of stability and security in the region.
FM stressed that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is still the main threat to ensuring regional security in the South Caucasus as a result of the occupation policy of Armenia towards Azerbaijani territories, despite the UN Security Council resolutions calling for the withdrawal of Armenian forces from Azerbaijani territories.
"While keeping foreign territories under occupation, Armenia did not achieve anything domestically. Today, it remains a country with a high rate of migration, poverty, unemployment, and, as a result, with a weak economy and low social living standards," said FM.
The minister mentioned that it’s impossible to say Armenia can approach any indicators of sustainable development.
"There is a situation in Armenia when people themselves do not believe in the country’s future, which explains the rapidly growing population outflow from the country. Moreover, they cannot make at least one argument about what Armenia has achieved by imposing the Karabakh conflict on Azerbaijan and the region," he said.
Mammadyarov noted that Azerbaijan is in favor of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict peaceful resolution. He added that Baku believes in conflict resolving in accordance with principles of the international law and laws, subject to the inviolability of country borders and the restoration of the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries arose in 1988 due to the territorial claims of Armenia against Azerbaijan. Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions - 20 percent of the territory of Azerbaijan - are under the occupation of the Armenian armed forces.
In May 1994, the parties reached a ceasefire regime, and so far, under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group and with the co-chairmanship of Russia, France and the U.S., there are still unsuccessful peace negotiations.
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Abdul Kerimkhanov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AbdulKerim94
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