The so-called "presidential election" in Armenian-occupied region of Nagorno-Karabakh is a clear violation of the constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the norms and principles of international law, Professor Naciye Selin Senocak, the head of the cultural diplomacy department at the Institute for European Studies in Brussels and head of the center for Diplomatic and Strategic Studies (CEDS) in Paris, told to media. EDNews.net reports citing to Trend.
“Armenia committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the massacre in Khojaly in 1992, which is a genocide. The international community has shamefully kept silent about this genocide. By pursuing its military build-up in the occupied territories, illegally changing demography through illegal settlement policy, altering the centuries-old toponyms, destroying cultural heritage in the occupied lands and organizing so-called “election”, Armenia tries to "legitimize" its presence in the occupied territories,” she said.
This proves Armenia is not interested in seeking diplomatic settlement of the armed conflict, added Senocak.
“In order to restore the peace and stability in the Caucasus region, the international community must demand Armenia cease the illegal occupation of Azerbaijan's territories, withdraw its troops from all seized lands and engage constructively in the conflict settlement process in the spirit and language of the adopted resolutions and norms and principles of international law. This conflict has serious security implications throughout Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East,” she noted.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
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