ASSEMBLY WELCOMES JOINT DECLARATION SIGNED BY PRESIDENTS OF ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN AND RUSSIA

PanARMENIAN.Net
03.11.2008 15:45 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Armenian Assembly of America welcomed the joint
Declaration signed by Presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia
and said that any decision on the problem should be admissible for
the people of Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh.

The Assembly commended RA President Serzh Sargsyan and his
Administration for securing a public, legal commitment from Azerbaijan
to adhere to the OSCE process, said Hirair Hovnanian, Assembly Chairman
of the Board of Trustees.

The Assembly also recalls the support of the United States for
the fundamental rights and the aspirations of the people of Nagorno
Karabakh and for a peaceful and fair settlement as evidenced by passage
of S.J.Res. 178 in the U.S. Senate, as well as, other statements and
actions taken by the U.S. Congress over the last 20 years, including
passage of Assembly-initiated Section 907 of the Freedom Support
Act, which restricted assistance to Azerbaijan until it ceased its
hostile and offensive actions, as well as humanitarian assistance
to help the people of Artsakh rebuild after the devastating effects
of the war that was thrust upon them by Azerbaijan. In addition, to
help facilitate the peace process, the U.S. Congress consistently
allocated funds for confidence building measures (CBMs) among the
parties, which were routinely rejected by Azerbaijan. Instead of
pursuing CBMs, the Azerbaijani military desecrated a centuries old
Armenian cemetery in Julfa.

The Christian cemetery dated back to medieval times and was filled
with scores of historic stone monuments engraved with ancient crosses
of historic Armenian design.