PAN-ARMENIAN CONFERENCE ADOPTS RESOLUTION FOLLOWING DISCUSSIONS ON KARABAKH, ARMENIAN-TURKISH ISSUES

Yerkir
13.07.2009 12:55

The pan-Armenian Conference, held in Stepanakert, on July 10-11 and
organized by the ARF Hay Dat Central Council, has passed a resolution
on the Artaskh issue and the Armenian-Turkish relations. Below is
the text of the resolution.

We, the representatives of Armenian communities in 25 countries of
the world, having discussed, at a conference organized under the
high patronage of the President of NKR, the current issues of utmost
importance for the nation and the state, namely the issues of Artsakh
and the Armenia-Turkish relations, herewith determine:

1. Armenia and the Armenians are at an important and decisive
stage. The preservation of our identity, the future of the two
Armenian states and of our nation depends on the further course and
the resolution of the two issues on our agenda.

2. We are determined to protect the interests and the rights of the
nation and the state and to secure our independent and dignified
place in the family of civilized nations, using all possible and
impossible means.

3. We demand confidence, realism and political will from the incumbent
and future authorities of the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of
Nagorno Karabakh; in these two critical issues, they should be guided
solely and exclusively by the interests of the Armenian nation and
the =0 Asense of responsibility before generations to come.

4. We realize that all issues related to the foundations of the
state and domestic and foreign policy are inter-related and insist
on comprehensive and balanced position [on these issues].

5. The Republic of Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora can become an
organized power only if we act as parts of the whole, establish a
format for exercising our joint will, employ our capacities and prove
to our neighbors and centers of power of the world that the Armenian
nation shall not tolerate infringement of our legitimate rights.

In view of the above, the conference herewith states in relation to
Armenia-Turkey relations:

Armenia and Turkey, as neighbor states, will eventually have to
establish normal relations. Armenia’s initiative to start diplomatic
relations and open the borders without any preconditions has already
been a concession and a demonstration of good will towards Turkey. In
more than a year Turkey, however, has not responded commensurately to
Armenia’s such unilateral readiness. None of Turkey’s leaders made
any public statement on their wish to normalize relations without
any preconditions. Turkey continues to establish preconditions,
consistently increases her biased role in the Artsakh issue and,
in reality, instead of heading for the normalization of relations,
successfully misguides the international community by thus removing
the Armenian issue from the agenda.

A In this context, signing the joint statement of April 22, 2009
was a wrong and a short-sighted move. Present trends are equally and
even more dangerous, as the power centers of the world are trying to
impose some accelerated solutions of the Artsakh issue and by doing
so steer the course of Armenia-Turkey relations in the direction
which is beneficial for Turkey [alone]. It is already obvious that
Armenia and the Armenians have to deal with a concerted policy of
Turkey-Azerbaijan tandem.

In these circumstances, we are confident about the relevance of
the below considerations and the importance of pursuing them at a
state level.

a) Lifting the blockade and establishing diplomatic relations based on
general provisions of international law and without any preconditions
should be viewed as a natural entry point for the dialogue between
the two states.

True friendly relations with Turkey may be established upon the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the restoration of the rights
of the Armenian people.

b) Universal recognition and condemnation of the Genocide and,
specifically, recognition and condemnation by Turkey is of fundamental
significance both in terms of restoring historical justice and in the
context of establishing an atmosphere of mutual confidence in the
region and prevention of such crimes in the future. This provision
of Armenia’s national security concept has de facto ceased to be a
guiding principl e of Armenia’s foreign policy. Any attempt to turn
the fact of the Genocide into a matter of a historical debate is
equally inadmissible.

c) Normalizing Armenia-Turkey relations at the expense of Armenia’s
sovereignty and viability and the rights of future generations is
absolutely inadmissible. The authorities of the Republic of Armenia
should not allow Turkey to use the imitation of negotiations for
scoring additional political and advocacy points in the international
arena.

d) Armenia’s authorities have a duty to revisit and reconsider the
course of public interaction initiated one year ago and its negative
outcomes, and should reveal to the international community Turkey’s
true intentions and discontinue the negotiations.

In relation to the current stage of the Artsakh issue, the conference
herewith states that:

The regional status quo is the result of Azerbaijan’s policy aimed
at shattering the right of free self-determination of the people of
Nagorno Karabakh, unleashing a war and losing it. Not only Artsakh
managed to defend her right to life, but it created a democratic state
conforming to all international norms; this state grows and develops
normally. Today and tomorrow, the dignity, the viability and the
future of Armenia and the Armenian nation are contingent on Artsakh’s
independence and security. Certain trends in relation to providing a
hasty solution to the problem and Azerbaijan’s belligerent statements
require that we remain vigilant, keep the issue in the focus of the
national discourse and, as appropriate, prevent any possibility of
unfair resolution of the conflict.

In view of the above, the conference believes that:

a) The course of the final settlement of the Artsakh issue is that
of peaceful negotiations; the distorted format of these negotiations
should however change so that the NKR becomes a full-fledged party
in the negotiations.

b) The negotiations process should be based on the accomplished
fact of the independence of the people of Artsakh and the results
of the 1991 independence and the 2006 Constitution referenda. The
negotiations should have, as an objective, an immediate recognition of
NKR independence and ensuring her security, and should not circumvent
the issue of occupied areas of Getashen, Mardakert and Martuni and the
rights of hundreds of thousands of Armenians displaced from Azerbaijan.

c) Nagorno Karabagh has never been a part of the independent
Azerbaijan; she declared independence in 1991 in the territory which
did not belong to Azerbaijan. The demise of the Soviet Union put an end
to the Soviet Azerbaijan’s jurisdiction over Artsakh. The commencement
of the Artsakh war and its consequences are the responsibility of
Azerbaijan alone.

d) While we realize that negotiations imply mutual concessions,
we at the same time maintain that mutual concessions, in view of all
components of the settlement of the conflict, may only be commensurate,
equal, concurrent and within the package solution framework. Otherwise,
any weakening of the security belt around the NKR, without restoring
its territorial integrity, will increase the likelihood of war and
thus threaten the safety of Artsakh’s population.

e) Within this context, the call of the co-chairs for the expedited
settlement of the conflict based on the so called Madrid Principles is
not in line with the nature of the conflict and its history. Moreover,
it completely ignores the will of the NKR people that they have already
so legitimately expressed. The conference believes that adopting any
international document without direct participation of the key party
to the conflict, i.e. the authorities of the NKR, is condemnable,
inadmissible and devoid of any legal power. The conference affirms
that the Republic of Armenia is not in a position to replace NKR in
resolving this vital issue. The conference further demands that the
proposed document be not signed and that urgent measures be taken to
return the NKR to the negotiations table as a full-fledged party.

f) Armenia should take all measures to guarantee the security and
independence of the NKR and attain an international affirmation of
her status. Accordingly, only a document excluding any use of force
and signed between the RA, NKR and Azerbaijan under the auspices of
the international community may ensure the irreversibility of the
pea ceful negotiations process.

g) For us, Artsakh is Armenia and shall remain as such. We have already
scored a victory by mobilizing the Armenian nation in the war unleashed
by Azerbaijan, and there should be no doubt that we shall do the same
should anyone decide to use the language of warfare against our nation.

We, the participants of the two-day conference on the Artsakh
issue and Armenia-Turkey relations herewith reaffirm our unity and
determination in relation to issues of importance for the nation and
the state. The independent Republic of Armenia, the free Artsakh,
the organized Diaspora and inalienable rights of our nation continue
to remain our ultimate values.