Karabakh army guarantor of regional stability – NKR Defence ministry

Mediamax news agency
21 Feb 05

YEREVAN

“The Nagornyy Karabakh Republic [NKR] defence army is an important
guarantor of regional stability and carries out the role of a
deterrent while international peacekeeping forces are absent from the
conflict zone,” a statement of the NKR Defence Ministry to mark the
anniversary of Armenian Senior Lt Gurgen Markaryan’s murder
reads. Markaryan was hacked to death in his sleep by Azerbaijani
officer Ramil Safarov [at NATO English course in Budapest in 2004].

“Azerbaijan did not condemn this monstrous crime. On the contrary, the
murderer became a national hero and the Azerbaijani authorities did
not even think to apologize for this crime. The NKR Defence Ministry
regards the committed brutality and similar position of the
Azerbaijani authorities as a result of Azerbaijan’s consistent
anti-Armenian and militarist propaganda. A policy of this kind creates
an atmosphere of intolerance which undermines the peaceful settlement
of the Karabakh conflict and endangers regional peace and security,”
the statement said.

The document noted that “Azerbaijan’s this behaviour and its desire to
turn the murderer into a hero once again testifies to the fact that
Nagornyy Karabakh’s independence is not only an issue of people’s
self-determination but the NKR people’s existence as well”.