Statement on "Incursion by Azerbaijan into the sovereign territory of Armenia" as delivered by Ambassador Armen Papikyan at the 1314th meeting of the Permanent Council

20 May, 2021

Madam Chairperson,

Since the last Permanent Council meeting, when the delegation of Armenia informed about Azerbaijan’s incursion into the sovereign territory of Armenia, the situation has not changed. The Azerbaijani troops continue their illegal presence in the Syunik and Gegharkunik provinces of the Republic of Armenia in violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Armenia. This encroachment of the Azerbaijani armed forces into the sovereign territory of Armenia, in flagrant violation of International law and OSCE principles and commitments, poses a serious threat to security and stability in the region and beyond.

Since 12 May, Armenia has been making efforts to resolve the issue by political and diplomatic means in order to avoid unnecessary casualties and further escalation of the already tense situation in the region. The Armenian authorities have been consulting with their international partners both on bilateral and multilateral levels, using all political means at their disposal. However, so far these consultations have not yielded any results, moreover, the Azerbaijani side did not show up for the next round of negotiations that were planned for yesterday, 19 May 2021.

Madame Chairperson,

The illegal presence of the Azerbaijani armed forces on the territory of Armenia grossly violates international human rights requirements, deprives residents of the border villages of Armenia of their only source of income, the ability to raise livestock and use pastures, and seriously hampers their access to irrigation and drinking water. The presence of Azerbaijani troops is accompanied by acts of intimidation and harassment of residents of border villages, including forcing them to leave or threatening death or captivity. In the aftermath of the war of aggression waged by Azerbaijan and its allies it creates additional psychological pressure.

In light of the continuing unnotified and large-scale military exercises conducted by Azerbaijan and the accumulation of military equipment and forces along the borders with Armenia one can safely assume that such destructive and provocative actions are aimed at further escalating the extremely fragile post-war situation and disrupting the implementation of the trilateral statement of 9 November 2020.

Dear colleagues,

Armenia once again strongly condemns this incursion into its sovereign territory and believes that this and other provocative actions of Azerbaijan are deliberate, pre--planned and disguise the territorial claims against the Republic of Armenia. Obviously, the Azerbaijani side is trying to justify these actions under the pretext of delimitation and demarcation of borders. In this regard we reiterate the previously stated position that demarcation and delimitation are not an exercise conducted at the gun point or at the level of field commanders but rather a political and legal process, which requires first of all stability and security and, of course, an environment of mutual trust.

Therefore, we once again emphasize that Azerbaijan must stop its provocative actions and immediately, without any preconditions, withdraw from the sovereign territory of Armenia.

To this end, Armenia will continue to explore all possible diplomatic avenues and demonstrate political will to resolve the issue peacefully.

Madame Chairperson,

Armenia is ready to continue making efforts to defuse tensions and find a negotiated solution to the current stalemate created by the incursion of the Azerbaijani armed forces into the sovereign territory of Armenia.

However, in light of the extremely belligerent rhetoric of the Azerbaijani leadership, subsequent incursion into the sovereign territory of Armenia and the conduct of yet another unnotified large-scale military exercises, the assurances of Azerbaijan of its readiness to peaceful co-existence, as well as willingness to engage in good faith in efforts aimed to resolve the conflict ring hollow and are clearly misleading.

Indeed, for that to happen we need first to have an environment conducive to dialogue and confidence-building. This aggressive posturing of Azerbaijan is a step in the wrong direction, which could lead to disastrous consequences for the entire region.

To de-escalate the already tense situation on the ground, first and foremost Azerbaijan should withdraw its troops from the territory of Armenia and to stop fuelling tension, which could lead to a further escalation of the situation on the ground.

We call on the OSCE Swedish Chairpersonship, the OSCE Secretary General and OSCE participating States to respond appropriately to the provocative and irresponsible actions of Azerbaijan to avoid further escalation of the situation and increase of tension in the region.

Madam Chairperson,

I kindly ask you to attach this statement to the journal of today’s meeting.

Thank you.

MFA RA
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