CCTS head calls for fair resolution of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
By Sara Rajabova
The number of international figures calling for the resolving of Armenian-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is rising day by day.
Halil Akinci, Secretary General of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States (CCTS), attending the 978th session of the OSCE Permanent Council called for greater efforts to find a fair solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, AzerTag news agency reported.
He said the CCTS observation mission have acquainted with the plight of the internally displaced persons ousted from the occupied lands of Azerbaijan.
Akinci said it is disappointing that except for the mission members who have visited the Agdam region of Azerbaijan, no other international organization has shown any interest in the IDPs' problems.
Armenian armed forces occupied Azerbaijan's Aghdam region in July 1993 and as a result some 128,000 people became internally displaced persons.
Akinci highlighted the Azerbaijani government's efforts, saying it does everything to improve IDPs living conditions.
He further said the delay of conflict settlement impedes establishment of peace, stability and security in region.
Noting that the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States keeps in focus the fair solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the CCTS Secretary General said along with the authoritative UN, the OSCE could make stronger efforts for resolving the mentioned problem.
Armenia occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions, after laying territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor that caused a brutal war in the early 1990s. Long-standing efforts by US, Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far.
As a result of the military aggression of Armenia, over 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed, almost 100,000 were injured, and 50,000 were disabled. Some 4,866 people are also reported missing.
The UN Security Council has passed four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal from the Azerbaijani territory, but they have not been enforced to this day.