ANKARA REJECTS NAGORNO-KARABAKH REFERENDUM
The New Anatolian, Turkey
Dec 12 2006
Turkey said on Monday that it would not recognize the outcome of a
referendum backing independence in the breakaway Azerbaijani region
of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry, in a written statement, said that
Ankara learned that Azerbaijan’s disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh
overwhelmingly voted in favor of its first controversial constitution
while ignoring international laws and the expectations of international
society.
The statement underlined that Ankara does not recognize the
independence of Nagorno-Karabakh, neither the "referendum" nor its
outcome, while condemning the development.
The statement said that people in Nagorno-Karabakh, a region under
the occupation of Armenia, live as refugees and in prison-like
conditions. The Foreign Ministry described the development as a new
violation of Azerbaijan’s political unity, sovereignty and territorial
integrity by Armenia.
The statement also underlined that the referendum move ignored
co-constructive efforts at peaceful conflict resolution that were
implemented under the Minsk Group in the European Security and
Cooperation Organization (OSCE).
In related news, the European Union said that it would not recognize
the outcome of a referendum backing independence in the breakaway
Azerbaijani region of Nagorno-Karabakh.