Representatives of NKR political parties and organisations issued a statement to OSCE Chairman-in-Office Kanat Saudabaev, and OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmen, Robert Bradtke, Igor Popov and Bernard Fassier.

The statement runs, “the reason for our appeal to you is the realization of the OSCE field assessment mission taking place now in the Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) Republic and the corresponding views and concerns existing in public-political life of our country.

The basic issue of the NKR population's concern is the goal of this mission. If it’s real goal is indeed the assessment of the current humanitarian situation in the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict zone it is at least strange why the field mission is implemented only in one section of this zone, in the NKR territory.

Appreciating your awareness of the history of the Karabakh issue, however, we consider it necessary remind you some facts and events, which played their role in the formation of the current humanitarian situation in the region.

The subordination of Nagorno Karabakh to the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) via wide regional autonomy was endorsed by the July 5, 1921 resolution of the Caucasian Bureau of the Communist (Bolshevik) Party.

Prior to this the League of Nations left the resolution of the issue of internationally recognized status of Nagorno Karabakh upon the Paris Peace Conference.

At the same time only two years later, in 1923, after the urgent demands of the Armenian majority of NK and Soviet Armenia, the Central Executive Committee of the Azerbaijan SSR proclaimed the Autonomous Oblast (Region) of Nagorno Karabakh on the part of the predominantly Armenian populated region, which always constituted an integrated whole as well as deprived the town of Shoushi from its status of Karabakh's capital.

For the whole period of the Soviet rule this unilateral resolution, which violated the interests of the Armenian majority of Nagorno Karabakh, caused constant indignation and complaints, which were sharply oppressed by the Azerbaijani authorities, and were leading to mass emigration of the Armenian population from the region.

Suffice it to say that within 25 years after the forced subordination to Azerbaijan the number of the Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh declined by 22000 people, while the Azerbaijani population of the oblast (region) increased almost threefold.

The discrimination towards Nagorno Karabakh is also testified by the fact that during the war in 1941-1945, over a third of its population, 44000 people, were recruited to the active army and almost half of them perished. In percentage, such horrible human losses were suffered only by the nations that underwent through the fascist occupation and ethnic cleansing. To compare, it should be noted that only 20% of the population of the Azerbaijan SSR was recruited to the front.

The issue of Armenian expulsions from Nagorno Karabakh was always on the agenda of the Azerbaijani state policy. In 2001 during a meeting with a group of writers Azerbaijani president Heydar Aliyev stated proudly that within 1969-1982, while being the leader of Soviet Azerbaijan, he could "radically change the demographic situation in Nagorno Karabakh in favour of the Azerbaijanis". This was one of the rare cases when president Aliyev said the truth.

Today, about a million of Karabakh Armenians live in various countries of the world. A considerable part of them was forced to leave the homeland for the reason of political persecution, real threats of physical extermination, and being deprived of the livelihood.

The last ethnic cleansing in Nagorno Karabakh took place in the regions of Shahoumyan and Getashen in 1991-1992 with the rough use of military force. As a result over 50000 Armenians were deprived of their homeland. Overall, 420000 Armenians were deported within 1988-1992 from Azerbaijan, having left in this country their property and wealth worth of billions of dollars and having got no compensation so far.

Unfortunately, Azerbaijan closed the window for a dialogue, resorting to violation. We had no other way but following the fundamental principles of international law proclaim our independence, create our national state institutes, and resist the military aggression, which led to destructions, tens of thousands of human losses and hardships.

Meanwhile, human sufferings of both the Armenians and the Azerbaijanis in the conflict zone could have been prevented if the Azerbaijani authorities had displayed elementary understanding of the Armenian population of the region.

Thus, the existing situation is the consequence of the war imposed by Azerbaijan. This is why the Azerbaijani authorities bear the full responsibility for the human losses. The criminal style and anti-Armenian rhetoric, armament drive and militant statements still depict Azerbaijani ideology.

We hope that the structure, which has assumed the mediation between the parties to the conflict, realizes that such a style of actions does not contribute to the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict and provokes a new war.

We have to remind that in the existing situation where the Karabakh party is deprived of the possibility of full-fledged participation in the negotiation process, Azerbaijan and the structure, which has assumed the settlement mission, will again be responsible for the consequences in case of resuming the war in the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict zone.

We hope that your further mediation activities will not inflame the ill imagination of Azerbaijan suffering from a mania of new bloodshed, will sober it up and will contribute to the creation of an atmosphere of a civilized dialogue and to the peaceful settlement of the conflict.”