The President of Artsakh Appeals to the OSCE, UN Security Council Members, and Other Leaders

The President of the Republic of Artsakh, Araik Harutyunyan, has sent letters to the leaders of all member states of the UN Security Council, the UN Secretary-General, the Chairman of the OSCE, the President of the European Council, the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, as well as to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia, demanding urgent and effective actions within the framework of their international obligations to stop the illegal and complete blockade of Artsakh by Azerbaijan and to halt the systematic mass crimes and terrorism committed against the people of Artsakh.

In the letters, in addition to expressing the expectations of the Republic of Artsakh from each addressee, the current situation has also been addressed. The main part of the letter's text is as follows:

“As the President of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), I am urgently appealing to the international community regarding the security and humanitarian crisis that has developed and is deepening in Artsakh, which is rapidly turning into a disaster. This situation has arisen as a result of the following criminal actions perpetrated by Azerbaijan: On December 12, 2022, the illegal blockade of the Lachin (Kashatagh) corridor, which connects Artsakh to Armenia and the outside world, has left approximately 120,000 residents of Artsakh trapped. In addition, around 30,000 citizens of the Republic of Artsakh have been deprived of the opportunity to exercise their right to return to their homeland.

Since then, the humanitarian movement of people and goods through the Lachin corridor has occurred exclusively through the International Committee of the Red Cross and Russian peacekeeping forces, with very limited volume and certain periodic disruptions, while the movement of vehicles belonging to the citizens of Artsakh is completely prohibited.

Since January 9, 2023, Azerbaijan has disrupted the power supply through the only high-voltage line from Armenia to Artsakh, continuously causing serious energy and humanitarian problems in Artsakh for 185 days, including daily six-hour power outages, a 48% reduction in electricity consumption, and the depletion of local electricity production and supply systems. Furthermore, since December 13, 2022, and almost continuously since March 21, Azerbaijan has disrupted the only gas supply from Armenia to Artsakh (for a total of 148 days), further deepening the energy and humanitarian crisis.

On April 23, Azerbaijan installed an illegal checkpoint on the Armenia-Artsakh border along the Lachin corridor, officially and openly starting military, strong, and arbitrary control over all movements. Since June 15, the complete blockade of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan has been observed, absolutely prohibiting any humanitarian transfers of any person or goods (including food, medication, hygiene items, and fuel) by the Red Cross and peacekeepers.

From June 25 to July 10, only a very limited volume of urgent transfers of patients in need of medical assistance to healthcare centers in Armenia, as well as certain medicines imported to Artsakh, were restored exclusively through the Red Cross, and again, after July 10, the movement of the Red Cross has been blocked.

Throughout this time, Azerbaijan has resorted to the use of force and threats against the people of Artsakh, displaying evident manifestations of ethnic hatred and terrorism with a clear aim of ethnic cleansing. The application of force and threats by Azerbaijan continuously hinders the organization of agricultural activities on approximately 10,000 hectares of land adjacent to the contact line, which constitutes a significant portion of the cultivated land. Especially since June 15, due to the suspension of all humanitarian supplies and the exclusive use of internal resources, the humanitarian situation is worsening day by day, particularly with a deteriorating food shortage, considering that 90% of all food products used before the blockade were imported from Armenia.

Due to the deepening shortages of fuel and other necessary means, about 70% of the planned agricultural work has not been carried out, while in other sectors of the economy, it is even more significant. For the same reason, internal transportation by public transport has been reduced by about 50%, and in the case of private transportation, it has been almost entirely cut off. The increasing shortage of medicines, medical supplies, and hygiene products, along with the prohibition on transferring patients to Armenia, poses escalating threats to people's lives and health.

Under the conditions of daily electricity outages and shortages of fuel, medical equipment is functioning with great difficulty and disruptions, leading to a further decrease in the volume and quality of services provided. Due to a lack of necessary foods and vitamins, approximately 2,000 pregnant women and about 30,000 children are forced to exist under conditions of malnutrition.

Daily power outages and shortages of fuel and other necessary supplies have become significant disruptions for the operation of water supply and telecommunications infrastructure in many settlements. Due to the blockade and the disruption of electricity and gas supply, about 12,000 people have become unemployed and deprived of their source of income, which constitutes more than 60% of those actively employed in the private sector. The complete blockade of the Republic of Artsakh and its isolation from the outside world, conducted with an interim purpose of forcibly subjugating the people of Artsakh, deepens the humanitarian crisis and prepares the ground for Azerbaijan's continuing crimes against humanity to escalate into genocide.

Azerbaijan, through such actions, deliberately creates unbearable conditions for the life of the people of Artsakh, aiming to achieve the depopulation of Artsakh and the extermination of its people. The mentioned and many other security and humanitarian issues pose increasing threats to the physical existence of the people of Artsakh. The current situation is explosive and carries a real risk of turning into a disaster not only for the people of Artsakh but for the entire region in a very short time.

In such conditions, we regret to note that Azerbaijan is intentionally violating and continuously infringing upon the provisions of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, the decision of the European Court of Human Rights dated December 21, 2022, the orders of the International Court of Justice dated February 22 and July 6, 2023, as well as the demands and calls of various international organizations and numerous states. Moreover, encouraged by international impunity, Azerbaijan has consistently developed its aggressive and criminal actions.”