Baku accuses OSCE MG of indifference to Karabakh issue

PanARMENIAN.Net - Azeri authorities expressed their disagreement with conceptual points in the OSCE MG co-chairs Field Assessment Mission report on the situation in Karabakh-adjacent territories.

As the Chief of the Public Policy Department of the Presidential Administration of Azerbaijan, Ali Hasanov stressed, Azeri authorities tend to “draw parallels” between the situations in Karabakh and Libya. Hasanov was “dissatisfied” with the fact that 4 UN General Assembly resolutions on Karabakh were disregarded, while the resolution against dictatorship in Libya was immediately fulfilled. Considering that fact, Azeri authorities tend to question the main theses of OSCE MG co-chairs report, believing such approach to be a “demonstration of indifference” to the issue.

On March 24, the OSCE MG co-chairs presented a report of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs' Field Assessment Mission to territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to OSCE Secretary General. The report testifies to the fact that OSCE representatives in charge of field assessment “failed to notice” the actively developing infrastructure of Artsakh as well as the development of economic, cultural and social sectors.

According to OSCE official website, the report says, “In traveling more than 1,000 kilometers throughout the territories, the Co-Chairs saw stark evidence of the disastrous consequences of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the failure to reach a peaceful settlement. Towns and villages that existed before the conflict are abandoned and almost entirely in ruins. While no reliable figures exist, the overall population is roughly estimated as 14,000 persons, living in small settlements and in the towns of Lachin and Kelbajar. The Co-Chairs assess that there has been no significant growth in the population since 2005. The settlers, for the most part ethnic Armenians who were relocated to the territories from elsewhere in Azerbaijan, live in precarious conditions, with poor infrastructure, little economic activity, and limited access to public services. Many lack identity documents. For administrative purposes, the seven territories, the former NK Oblast, and other areas have been incorporated into eight new districts.”

As the co-chairs believe, “the harsh reality of the situation in the territories has reinforced the view of the Co-Chairs that the status quo is unacceptable, and that only a peaceful, negotiated settlement can bring the prospect of a better, more certain future to the people who used to live in the territories and those who live there now.”

The Co-Chairs urge the leaders of all the parties "to avoid any activities in the territories and other disputed areas that would prejudice a final settlement or change the character of these areas." They also recommend that "measures be taken to preserve cemeteries and places of worship in the territories and to clarify the status of settlers who lack identity documents." The Co-Chairs intend "to undertake further missions to other areas affected by the NK conflict, and to include in such missions experts from relevant international agencies that would be involved in implementing a peace settlement."