Armenia Advocates for Clear Borders at OSCE Permanent Council Meeting

On July 20, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan participated in a special session of the OSCE Permanent Council convened at Armenia's request in Vienna. Before the meeting commenced, Minister Mirzoyan had a brief meeting with Igor Djundjev, the current president of the OSCE Permanent Council. During the session, Minister Mirzoyan delivered a speech, which is presented in full below. Representatives from the EU and ten other countries also spoke, reiterating the necessity of restoring free and safe movement through the Lachin Corridor.

"Mr. President, Honorable Ambassadors, Ladies and Gentlemen, I want to thank the Presidency of North Macedonia for convening this special session of the Permanent Council of the OSCE. This is the second time this year that I address this esteemed body, and the second time that I speak about the humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh caused by the illegal blockade of the Lachin Corridor by Azerbaijan. I want to draw your attention to the events that have occurred since my last address to the Permanent Council’s special session. On February 22, the International Court of Justice issued a legally binding order against Azerbaijan, obligating it to take all necessary measures to ensure the unhindered movement of persons, vehicles, and cargo through the Lachin Corridor. In stark opposition to this order, on April 23, Azerbaijan illegally set up a checkpoint in the Lachin Corridor, claiming that it was implementing the Court's order. Furthermore, on June 15, Azerbaijan completely shut down the Lachin Corridor, prohibiting any type of access, including humanitarian access, to Nagorno-Karabakh, including for the International Committee of the Red Cross.

On July 6, the International Court of Justice reaffirmed Azerbaijan's internationally recognized legal obligation to take all measures at its disposal to ensure the unhindered movement of persons, vehicles, and cargo through the Lachin Corridor in both directions, thereby immediately suspending the operation of its checkpoint, as it evidently obstructs the rights of Armenians residing in Nagorno-Karabakh as stipulated by the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

Dear colleagues, alongside this speech, the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to the outside world, the Lachin Corridor, continues to be effectively blocked by Azerbaijan. More than seven months after this illegal blockade, the situation on the ground is rapidly deteriorating. I know that our delegation at the OSCE regularly informs the Permanent Council about the situation on the ground, so I will not focus on the details but will summarize the main points. From a humanitarian perspective, energy and food security issues are of utmost urgency, as well as the disruption of the proper functioning of the healthcare system.

I would like to present some facts and figures that will help provide a better understanding of the situation on the ground.

Regarding energy security: since January 9, Azerbaijan has disrupted electricity supply between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh via the only high-voltage line. Daily six-hour power outages are occurring, with electricity consumption decreasing by 48%, and local electricity generation and supply systems are overexploited. Since December 13, 2022, Azerbaijan has periodically, and since March 21, 2023, almost permanently disrupted gas supplies from Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh, exacerbating the energy and humanitarian crisis. With decreasing availability of fuel and other essential supplies and total suspension of supplies from Armenia, almost all agricultural activities, as well as operations in other sectors of the economy, have ceased. Moreover, the transportation system is also paralyzed.

Public, including intercommunity transport, will cease to function in a few days, while private transport has long been rendered inactive. Due to the acute fuel shortage, only two buses operate in Stepanakert, serving about 60,000 residents.

With regard to food security, since June 15, all humanitarian supplies have been suspended, combined with the gradual depletion of limited internal reserves, leading to a deepening food shortage and store closures. Before the blockade, about 90% of food items consumed were imported from Armenia. Thus, every day, the people of Nagorno-Karabakh are deprived of 400 tons of essential goods.

Moreover, through the use of force and threats, Azerbaijan continues to obstruct agricultural activities on about 10,000 hectares of land adjacent to the contact line, which constitutes a substantial part of the total arable land. As a result, the people of Nagorno-Karabakh are now on the brink of famine and starvation. The illegal blockade has also led to the violation of other fundamental rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, including the right to receive medical assistance, as the healthcare system is also affected by the fuel shortage, unable to organize even urgent transfers of patients to local hospitals. Daily power outages and fuel shortages have severely affected the operation of medical equipment, leading to a decrease in the volume and quality of healthcare services. The growing need for medication, medical supplies, and hygiene items, coupled with a ban on transferring patients in need of medical care to Armenia, poses an escalating threat to people's lives and health. Due to the shortage of essential foodstuffs and vitamins, around 2,000 pregnant women, 30,000 children, 20,000 elderly, and 9,000 people with disabilities are struggling for survival under malnutrition conditions.

People with chronic illnesses, including 4,678 diabetics and 8,450 individuals with circulatory diseases, are almost deprived of access to necessary medications. Pharmacy windows are completely empty, making it impossible for even first-aid necessary medications to be provided. Lastly, due to the blockade, also social and educational rights are being violated concerning the disruption of the activities of educational institutions and social services.

In this humanitarian disaster context, we cannot remain silent and indifferent, but must act decisively and without delay to prevent a looming catastrophe. We must clearly declare and affirm that these actions, regardless of who carries them out, constitute gross violations of international humanitarian law and a violation of the Geneva Conventions, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention.

It is the indisputable obligation of states to ensure the "free movement of essential foodstuffs, clothing, and medicines for children under 15, pregnant women, and mothers of newborns" and "to allow the free movement of medical supplies and hospital materials for civilians." These deliberate actions by Azerbaijan can only be classified as illegal and inhumane.

They not only violate fundamental human rights and the dignity of the people but also aim to create unbearable conditions for living and to subject Nagorno-Karabakh to ethnic cleansing.

Mr. President, Honorable colleagues, I would now like to address the political and security dimension and reaffirm that the Armenian side is committed to continuing its efforts towards resolving relations and starting a new era of peace in our region. Taking this opportunity, I would like to emphasize the importance of negotiations carried out with the mediation and assistance of our partners.

We highly appreciate their efforts and commitment to the peace agenda and to a better future for our region. We are convinced that stable peace in the region is possible, and it can be achieved if the parties demonstrate maximum willingness to address the root causes of the conflict. In this respect, the issue of the rights and security of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh is key. As recently stated by the Prime Minister of Armenia, we are ready to recognize Azerbaijan's territory of 86,600 square kilometers, including Nagorno-Karabakh, but with the understanding that the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh should be discussed under an international mechanism through dialogue between Stepanakert and Baku.

The recognition of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity must not and cannot be misinterpreted and used as a license for ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh. For understandable reasons, I cannot go into much detail about ongoing discussions and would simply like to reaffirm our readiness to sincerely engage in finding solutions to extremely complex and sensitive issues and situations. One of the most important issues on the negotiating agenda concerns the mutual recognition of existing inter-state borders.

According to the Alma-Ata Declaration of 1991, the administrative borders of the former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan were recognized as state borders. Armenia supports the establishment of clear borders to avoid future territorial claims and to exclude the possibility of materializing those claims through the use of force. To avoid any further ambiguity, we propose that the latest existing maps be used as a basis for the demarcation of international borders. With deep regret, I must note that leaving serious ambiguity on this issue seems to be precisely what the leadership of Azerbaijan intends and strives for.

Moreover, establishing peace and security also requires the implementation of certain confidence-building measures. To this end, we have proposed establishing a demilitarized zone along the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Our proposal is to relocate forces to the borders defined by the maps of the USSR General Staff of 1975 and to initiate discussions regarding the conditions for establishing this demilitarized zone or for the withdrawal of forces. Unfortunately, the Azerbaijani side has so far hesitated to engage in these discussions, and the proposal submitted in writing to Azerbaijan regarding mechanisms by the Armenian side more than a year ago has not even been considered.

Another issue on the agenda of the negotiations relates to the unblocking of regional transportation and economic connections. Being a landlocked country and having closed borders with two of our four neighbors, Armenia is highly interested in advancing this agenda, fully aware that all communication routes must operate based on the sovereignty and national authority of countries and in accordance with the principles of equality and reciprocity. The progress recorded in this regard over the last three years gives us some optimism regarding our pursuit of what we call the "Armenian Crossroad" vision. At the same time, we witness that alongside the negotiating process concerning the normalization of relations with Armenia, Azerbaijan is consistently taking actions that lead to the deterioration of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent areas. In his speech of May 28, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev publicly confessed his real intentions and reluctance to adequately address the rights and security guarantees of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.

I would like to address some messages from his speech: "The border checkpoint installed on April 23 should serve as a lesson for the Armenians living in the region today." "We are going to take our planned last step, and that step will be taken, I have no doubt about it. I tell them here from the land of Lachin, which they exploited for years and engaged in illegal settlement, that their book is closed."

"My representative went and had the first meeting with them, then we invited them to Baku to negotiate: they refused to do so. After that, we invited them for the second time to Baku, that is, the representatives of the Armenian minority living in Nagorno-Karabakh. They refused that as well. There will be no third invitation. Either they will come with their heads down and come by themselves, or now everything will happen differently." This rhetoric, in conjunction with Azerbaijan's non-implementation of the legally binding decision of the International Court of Justice and the violation of obligations undertaken by the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, openly reveals the true disposition and stance of the Azerbaijani leadership concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the issues arising from it.

Azerbaijan's statements and actions equally demonstrate a lack of commitment to upholding international law and a desire to heed the calls of the international community.

Mr. President, I would now like to turn to the question of Armenian prisoners of war and other detained persons held in Azerbaijan after the 44-day war. Azerbaijan refuses to return all Armenian prisoners of war and abducted civilians. According to the data confirmed by Azerbaijan, 33 individuals, including three civilians, are still detained in Baku. Moreover, on May 26, 2023, after meetings in Brussels and Moscow, two servicemen of the Armenian Armed Forces delivering supplies to combat positions were abducted by armed units of Azerbaijan crossing the state border of Armenia illegally. On July 7, they were sentenced to 11.5 years in prison. This is yet another violation of international humanitarian law and a breach of the trilateral statement of November 9 by Azerbaijan.

Mr. President, Honorable Ambassadors, the OSCE has been involved in mediating the negotiations for the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict since the early 1990s, with its authorized mechanisms. Unfortunately, the use of force and military aggression dealt a severe blow to those efforts. Although Azerbaijan mistakenly insists that NK is now an internal issue, the humanitarian disaster created by Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh shows that no Armenian can survive in Nagorno-Karabakh without a viable international mechanism. Despite ongoing negotiations with Azerbaijan, the further deterioration of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh threatens to seriously damage the ongoing political process.

Thus, all partners interested in peace and stability in the South Caucasus must take clear actions. The situation is clear: applying pressure on Azerbaijan to open the Lachin Corridor will greatly contribute to the prospects for peace in our region. In concluding my remarks, I would like to once again raise the alarm that the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh is worsening hour by hour. The current situation requires immediate attention from the international community. The dispatch of a needs assessment mission to Nagorno-Karabakh by the relevant international organizations and the provision of humanitarian assistance to the affected population are of utmost importance. Armenia expects Azerbaijan to restore the free movement and security of persons, vehicles, and cargo through the Lachin Corridor in accordance with previously reached agreements, implement the decision issued by the International Court of Justice on February 23, 2023, reaffirmed on July 6, ensure humanitarian access to Nagorno-Karabakh, and cooperate with relevant international organizations, particularly UN agencies, to resolve all unresolved issues related to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict or arising from it exclusively through peaceful means.

Thank you for your attention.

Closing Speech I would like to thank all the delegations that just now clearly and unequivocally expressed their views on the unacceptable humanitarian situation resulting from the illegal blockade of the Lachin Corridor. Let me once again emphasize that the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh is catastrophic and may have unforeseen consequences. We are no longer talking about an impending crisis; we are talking about an ongoing humanitarian disaster. Medieval practices must cease.

This cannot continue if we are serious about values and principles. The international community as a whole and the OSCE in particular cannot remain silent, as the lives of 120,000 people are at stake. The blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh and the obstruction of the Lachin Corridor must be lifted immediately, and matters related to and arising from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict must be addressed properly and in good faith. This will pave the way for advancing negotiations towards restoring relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and bring the long-awaited peace to the region. Silence, indifference, and inaction are no longer options.

International mechanisms must respond swiftly to such situations in accordance with their mandated actions and existing toolkits. Thank you."