Azernews.Az

A resolution on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno Karabakh has been adopted at the International Young Democrat Union board meeting in the Lebanese capital Beirut.

IYDU is a global alliance of centre-right political youth organizations. Established in 1981, then re-established in 1991, IYDU has 127 full-fledged and observer members from over 80 countries and is the youth wing of the International Democrat Union (IDU).

The resolution stressed that the Nagorno Karabakh conflict has been lasting for more than 20 years, Europe-Azerbaijan Society told Trend news agency.

The document stated that the security vanished, conflicts and violence arose when the Soviet Union was on the brink of a collapse in the late 1980s. People living in Armenia and Azerbaijan became refugees in the South Caucasus region.

``While all Azerbaijanis were forced out of Armenia, the Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh claimed the territory and were supported by Armenian troops who occupied Nagorno Karabakh and seven surrounding Azerbaijani regions,`` the resolution said. ``As a result of bloody battles all Azerbaijanis were driven out of these regions comprising about 20 percent of Azerbaijan`s territory. About 25,000 people were killed in the fighting and 1 million lost their homes and became refugees.``

The document emphasized that the United Nations Security Council passed four resolutions as fighting raged in 1993. All the resolutions reaffirmed the inviolability of state borders, the inadmissibility of using force for the acquisition of territory and demanded a withdrawal of occupying forces.

``On Jan. 25, 2005, the Council of Europe parliamentary assembly passed the resolution No. 1416, urging the two countries to comply with the UN Security Council resolutions by refraining from any hostilities and withdrawing armed forces from the occupied territories,`` the document said.

``On May 20, 2010 the European Parliament passed a resolution on a strategy for the South Caucasus by demanding to withdraw Armenian forces from Azerbaijan`s occupied territories,`` it said.

The resolution said the precondition stated in these six resolutions has been ignored. The Azerbaijani regions remain under occupation. According to international law, Nagorno Karabakh and the seven surrounding regions are part of the Azerbaijan Republic, it stressed.

``The international community has condemned the attempted secession as illegitimate. The status quo is described as a frozen conflict and the OSCE Minsk Group has been mediating for 20 years. There are regular exchanges of fire across the front line. Servicemen and civilians are killed on both sides. A nine-year-old Azerbaijani boy was killed by sniper fire from the occupied area in March 2011. The efforts of the Minsk Group have failed to change the status quo. Both sides increase military expenditure.``

The resolution said that while there is massive destruction in the occupied areas, no recovering work is being conducted.

``The tension hampers economic and social progress. The Caspian Sea is a vital source of energy supplies, especially important to Europe trying to ensure energy security by diversifying its oil and gas sources. The outbreak of hostilities in the region threatens the energy supplies from Azerbaijan.``

The authors of the resolution urged the two sides of the conflict to break the deadlock in negotiations peacefully and constructively, to change the status quo and to promote trust and cooperation between their peoples.

``We urge the UN, EU and CoE to strengthen the attempts to fulfill the resolutions for peaceful settlement of the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh and the seven adjacent regions in accordance with international law,`` the resolution said. ``We urge the EU to replace France and play a direct role in the conflict settlement. The EU must create opportunities for political and economic cooperation between Armenia and Azerbaijan within the Eastern Partnership and Euronest. We urge the UN Security Council to review its position and to show leadership in preserving international law.``

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. The two countries fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a precarious cease-fire in 1994. Armenian armed forces have since occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan`s internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno Karabakh, defying international calls and UN resolutions. Peace talks, brokered by the United States, Russia and France through the Minsk Group, have been largely fruitless so far.