ECHR Grants Only Second Request of Armenia Regarding Lachin Corridor

Armenia has presented two requests to the European Court to unblock the Lachin corridor and to ensure the movement of severely ill patients in need of medical assistance during transit, as well as the safe passage of those stranded or in need of livelihood along the route. The ECHR has granted only the second request of Armenia. This was announced at a press conference by the Armenian representative on international legal issues, Yeghishe Kirakosyan.

"We tried to put forward the maximum request to the court, justifying its necessity, but the court has certain limitations. That is, the scope of the interim measures or the scope of cases is limited under the logic of its precedent law based on articles two and three of the convention," Kirakosyan stated.

According to him, Armenia's expectations from the European Court were not very high, and it is mistaken to expect that the court would obligate Azerbaijan to open the Lachin corridor, as the ECHR connects any action to a specific right, such as the protection of the right to life or the prohibition of inhumane and degrading treatment, etc. In other words, when implementing measures, the ECHR has clear legal frameworks.

Furthermore, he noted that the court generally avoids engaging in such complicated conflict-related cases. Nevertheless, the response received from the court, in Kirakosyan's assessment, was satisfactory for Armenia. The ECHR’s response to the situation created in the Lachin corridor is also due to the fact that what is happening is painful and, from a humanitarian perspective, illogical and inhumane.

He also emphasized that the ECHR made reference to point six of the trilateral statement from November 9, 2020, regarding the Lachin corridor in its decision.

"Of course, it is difficult to consider it a decision tilted towards the Armenian side. This is at least a decision based on facts that reflects objective reality, and I believe we should work on this politically. I think we should try to use this because the impact of this decision is contingent upon subsequent diplomatic and political efforts," stressed Armenia's representative at the ECHR.

As for Azerbaijan's compliance with the court's decision, Kirakosyan does not expect it to be executed. He outlined what could formally follow from Azerbaijan's non-compliance with the decision. "First, there is a platform of the Committee of Ministers, which the court can notify concerning the measures taken, and the Committee of Ministers, being the main political body of the Council of Europe, also monitors the implementation of court judgments and decisions. If necessary, the Committee of Ministers should discuss and intervene in these issues, understand what political steps are necessary to strengthen pressure on Azerbaijan," he said.

Kirakosyan noted that there are also other procedures, including raising the issue of Azerbaijan's breach of its obligations and the question of suspending its Council of Europe membership. However, a long way lies ahead for that.

It should be recalled that on the morning of December 12, a group of Azerbaijanis in civilian clothes blocked the Stepanakert-Goris highway connecting Artsakh to Armenia, citing environmental reasons at the Shushi-Karin Tak intersection. From December 13, the Azerbaijani side had also cut off the gas supply to Artsakh. On the morning of December 16, Artsakh's State Minister Ruben Vardanyan announced that gas supply to Artsakh had been restored without any preconditions. However, the Lachin corridor remains closed.