NAGORNO-KARABAKH PEOPLE MADE THEIR CHOICE LONG AGO
Christine Mnatsakanian

Azat Artsakh, Republic of Nagorno Karabakh
Sept 29 2006

On September 26 Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian met with the
OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs. We have learned from the department of
public relations of the Armenian foreign ministry that the current
state of negotiations was discussed in the context of the new
initiative of GUAM on the agenda of the UN General Assembly. And on
September 25 Vardan Oskanian made a speech in the 61st session of the
UN General Assembly. The foreign minister asserted the fact that the
only settlement of the Karabakh conflict is compromise and realism,
"Armenia expressed its standpoint clearly. We agreed to every basic
principle of the document on the table. In bringing into being this
or another document Azerbaijan cannot think or pretend that it still
has the military option. They tried out the military way and failed.

Compromise and realism are the only realistic variants," said
the minister, according to the department of public relations of
the foreign ministry. The minister described the present policy of
Azerbaijan to neglect whatever took place over the past 20 years as
unrealistic and dishonest. Vardan Oskanian thinks that nobody can
accuse us of our confidence that Azerbaijan is not ready or is not
interested in the talks. "By rejecting the former two proposals based
on compromise presented in the past 8 years, they are reluctant to
assume responsibility for having rejected the plan of establishing
peace, thereby using every means, including state violence and
international maneuvers to get the Armenians reject it," said the
minister. With regard to the settlement in the context of territorial
integrity or the right for self-determination, Vardan Oskanian says
Azerbaijan’s efforts to place territorial integrity above all the
other principles were promoted, especially in this hall. However,
he says, the right to self-determination was placed on an equal basis
with the other principles in the Helsinki final act. He thinks that
the Nagorno-Karabakh people made their choice. "They were victims of
state violence, defended themselves and succeeded despite all," said
Vardan Oskanian. He stated that the states must deserve their right to
rule. "Azerbaijan did not treat the people of Nagorno Karabakh with
responsibility or morally who were its citizens. In towns, far from
Nagorno Karabakh, they slaughtered, bombed and displaced 300 thousand
Armenians, and after the defeat they started sweeping all the traces of
Armenians, demolishing thousands of khachkars and gravestones," stated
the foreign minister at the session of the UN General Assembly. Vardan
Oskanyan said this means that the attitude of Azerbaijan to tolerance,
human values, culture, cooperation and even peace has not changed.