OSCE MINSK GROUP ISSUES STATEMENT OPPOSING UN RESOLUTION ON KARABAKH

Interfax News Agency
March 18 2008
Russia

The OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) Minsk
Group co-chairmen from the United States, Russia and France have
said that the draft resolution on Karabakh put forward by Baku at
the United Nations General Assembly was unilateral and was therefore
opposed by these countries.

The co-chairmen’s statement, released in Baku on Tuesday, says that the
basic principles of conflict resolution proposed to the conflicting
parties in November 2007 were a balanced set of principles currently
in discussion and the resolution adopted by the UN General assembly
breaks this principle of balance.

Due to such a selective approach, the three nations co-chairing the
OSCE Minsk Group must oppose this unilateral draft resolution. They
repeat that a peaceful, equal and long-term settlement of the Karabakh
conflict requires from the parties inevitable compromises reflecting
the principles of territorial integrity, none use of force and nations’
equal rights [to self-determination], as well as other principles of
international law, the statement said.

While opposing the resolution, the co-chairmen have once again
confirmed their support for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity,
thereby refusing to recognize the independence of Nagorno Karabakh,
the statement said.

On March 14, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on Nagorno
Karabakh, demanding an immediate withdrawal of Armenian forces from
Azerbaijan’s occupied territories.

The resolution was favored by 39 nations, and opposed by seven
(including Russia, the U.S., France), and 100 nations abstained.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress