Azerbaijan restores state border in compliance with international law
By Vafa Ismayilova
After liberating its territories from Armenia’s three-decade occupation in a war in 2020, Azerbaijan has started to restore its state border in full compliance with international law.
Due to Armenia’s aggressive policy and the occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories, the delimitation of borders between the two countries has not been possible for 30 years. The elimination of the occupation fact necessitated the delimitation process, which generated a wave of unjustified hysteria in Armenia.
Latest fresh provocations caused by Armenia once again prove that certain forces in this country are not interested in regional peace and security. Some experts predict that in the run-up to the June snap elections, a number of groups seek to destabilize the situation and terminate the November peace deal. Despite all possible subversive acts, Azerbaijan firmly stands in its position and is set to delimitate its borders in line with all international legal documents and the trilateral peace deal.
Delimitation based on international law
During the occupation, Armenia envisioned the concept of borders on the line of contact of troops and may not be ready to deal with the new reality that has arisen today. However, the current reality is based on the international law factor, and all issues must be resolved within this framework.
Currently, border delimitation is carried out on the basis of maps compiled by the Main Directorate of Geodesy and Cartography under the USSR Council of Ministers in the early 1970s and printed by the Defence Ministry’s 6th Printing House for the Soviet armed forces in 1975.
These maps were drawn up for administrative and territorial division due to the adoption of the new Soviet Constitution of 1977 and on the basis of the final act of the 1975 Helsinki Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. According to experts, they are the only legal document for the delimitation of the state border between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The establishment of borders between Azerbaijan and Armenia is also stipulated by the November 10 peace deal signed by the Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian leaders in 2020.
No matter how Armenia treats the situation, it assumed tough obligations when signing the deal and the obligations must be fulfilled.
While Azerbaijan is dealing with this issue, Armenia is seizing the moment to stir up a scandal, by aggravating the border situation in the hope of delaying the inglorious end at least for a while.
Inadequate response
In an official statement on May 13, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry stated that under the November trilateral peace deal, with the improvement of weather conditions, the Azerbaijani border forces were deployed in Azerbaijani positions in liberated Lachin and Kalbajar regions' settlements bordering with Armenia, which have a difficult mountainous terrain and climatic conditions.
"This process is carried out in the usual mode and in a systematic manner," the ministry said.
It noted that Azerbaijan reinforced its border protection system within its territorial integrity on the basis of maps available to each side that define the Armenian-Azerbaijani borderline.
"Since regaining its independence, there has been no state border between the two countries for obvious reasons, and for this reason, we speak about the complicated technical process, which is currently accompanied by disagreements between the sides," the ministry said.
It expressed Baku's surprise at Armenia's inadequate reaction to the process and provocative statements.
"We believe that attempts by [Armenia's] official circles to use this issue for political purposes in connection with the pre-election situation in Armenia are unacceptable," the statement added, noting ongoing steps to normalize the situation.
Baku recommended Armenia's political and military circles "not be alarmed, accept the reality of the interstate border regime along Zangilan, Gubadli, Lachin and Kalbajar regions of Azerbaijan and not unreasonably aggravate the situation in the region. Such cases can and should be resolved through mutual contacts between the military on both sides".
From its side, Azerbaijan is committed to resolving tensions in the region and calls for appropriate steps to be taken to that end, said the ministry.
Attempts to internationalize delimitation
In contact with all international circles over the tension created by Armenia, Azerbaijan stressed Armenia's attempts to internationalize the issue.
In his conversation with US President’s National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan on May 17, President Ilham Aliyev said that the situation in the region, including the Azerbaijani-Armenian border, has been stable for six months since the end of the conflict.
Aliyev agreed with Sullivan on the need for commencing talks on the delimitation of the international border between Azerbaijan and Armenia and emphasized the importance of the process to be conducted in line with the November deal.
He said that Armenia's inadequate response to border tensions and attempts to internationalize the issue could lead to increased tensions in the region, and stressed the importance of peacefully resolving all disputes within the negotiation process.
In a phone conversation with his Kazakh counterpart Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on May 17, Aliyev noted that there was no border clash with Armenia. He described as baseless Armenia’s appeal to the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) over the issue, describing it as Armenia’s attempt to internationalize the issue.
Earlier, Armenia tried to portray the border clarification process as a violation of its border and sought CSTO’s interference into the issue.
In response to Yerevan allegations about Azerbaijan's violation of Armenia's "sovereign territory", Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Leyla Abdullayeva said this technical issue had been exaggerated by provocative statements and a smear campaign against Azerbaijan.
She said that this destructive approach only served to increase tensions and explained Yerevan's inadequate reaction and provocative statements with the pre-election situation in Armenia.
"Armenia's attempts to use this issue as a political tool are unacceptable,” she said.
She recommended Armenia's political and military circles to recognize the reality of the interstate border regime along the international border, to prevent an unreasonable aggravation of the regional situation, and to constructively resolve border issues with Azerbaijan through bilateral channels.
She noted that “it is Armenia that violates the internationally recognized borders of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan is only restoring its internationally recognized borders". Abdullayeva described the illegal occupation of Azerbaijan by Armenia until November 2020 as "the root cause of border problems".
Successful demarcation key to peace, security
Baku believes that good neighborly relations and well-intentioned launch of the delimitation and demarcation of borders are the only way to resolve any disputes that may arise.
"Armenia and Azerbaijan have just emerged from the war, therefore successful border demarcation and delimitation play a key role in ensuring peace and security,” Abdullayeva said.
Abdullayeva stressed that disagreements between the parties on border issues should be resolved politically and diplomatically.
Against the background of the current regional situation, Azerbaijan is set to continue cooperation with international agencies and interested countries, which could contribute to lasting regional peace and security.
On May 25 in Austria, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said that Azerbaijan will continue to cooperate with the OSCE executive bodies towards the post-war rehabilitation and reintegration in Karabakh.
"It was stressed that the settlement of the conflict has created new prospects for peace, security, and cooperation in the region and that the OSCE can also contribute to these processes," the Foreign Ministry said.
In response to Bayramov's remarks made at a special meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, many of the attending OSCE permanent states emphasized the importance of stabilizing the regional situation after the signing of the November 10 trilateral statement.
They called for taking further steps to strengthen peace, implementing the issues arising from the trilateral peace deal, restoring the political dialogue at a high level, implementing confidence-building measures in the post-war period, taking humanitarian measures and cooperating in this sphere, opening the regional economic and transport links, and resolving recent tensions on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border through talks.
--
Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz