Azerbaijani ambassador in UN: "OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs have no right to be neutral"

Today
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March 17 2008
Azerbaijan

OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen have no right to be neutral when
Azerbaijani lands are under occupation.

The due announcement was made by Agshin Mekhtiyev, ambassador
extraordinary and plenipotentiary of Azerbaijan in UN at a
plenary session of the UN General Assembly on Friday, according to
Novosti-Azerbaijan.

"The co-chairs do not have any right to reject the principle
of territorial integrity for the sake of their own frustrating
neutrality. The said neutrality is rather the absence of any
position. Neutrality is impossible in conditions of the violation
of norms of international law. Neutrality in these conditions
demonstrated complete neglect of norms of international law", the
diplomat explained.

Mekhtiyev voiced Azerbaijan’s concern over the clear proposals from
the side of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmen.

"By their words their supported the release of all the occupied lands
and return of the Azerbaijani population to Nagorno Karabakh, but in
fact they tried to belittle this common task", Mekhtiyev noted.

The Azerbaijani representative in the United Nations said presenting
the draft resolution on the situation on the occupied lands of
Azerbaijan that both low and mountain parts of Nagorno Karabakh had
always been connected with Azerbaijani economically and politically
and had been its integral part.

"In the process of a bloody in 1988-1994 Armenia under support
of foreign troops and with direct participation of international
mercenaries and terrorist groups occupied not only Nagorno Karabakh
but also seven adjacent regions. The occupation process was accompanied
by ethnic cleansing. Over 1,000,000 Azerbaijanis turned into refugees
and internally displaced persons", he noted.

He stressed that Armenian leadership tried to make everything possible
to substantiate the occupation fact.

"Thus, Armenians falsified the history and misappropriated cultural
and architectural heritage of all the occupied lands. Furthermore,
the Armenian leadership started the policy of mass settlement of
Armenians in the occupied lands.

The UN mission, sent to the occupied lands in early 2005, confirmed
facts of Armenian settlement there", the diplomat explained.

"But the most dangerous deterioration of the situation on the contact
front line occurred on March 4 of 2008 when Armenian occupational
forces violated the ceasefire regime, which led to five deaths from
the Azerbaijani side and 27 from Armenia. This provocation arranged
by Armenians was obviously intended for distraction of attention
from the tense situation in Armenia. The use of violence has become
a traditional method of external and internal policy of the said
country", Mekhtiyev said.

The diplomat also noted in his report that Azerbaijan has always hold
talks accurately, while Armenia used talks to hide its illegal actions.

"The talks based on the clear position of complete restoration of the
territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan. The final stage
of the conflict settlement envisions tranformation of Nagorno Karabakh
into a peaceful and developing region where Azerbaijani and Armenian
citizens would coexist peaceful within the Azerbaijan Republic.

Conflict consequences should be removed for attaining this goal, which
implies the withdrawal of occupational troops from all the occupied
lands and return of internally displaced persons to their native lands,
as well as restoration of communications", Mekhtiyev concluded.