The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Mountainous Karabagh has
released a statement about continuing efforts by the Azerbaijani government at
misleading the international community and disrupting the peace process, noting
that despite Azerbaijan’s baseless propaganda, everyone is welcome and
encouraged to visit Artsakh. Below is the statement:
"Authorities of the Nagorno-Karabagh Republic (NKR) have on numerous occasions
expressed their grave concern over the fraudulent campaign by Azerbaijan aimed
at distorting the essence of the conflict between Azerbaijan and Nagorno
Karabagh and misleading the international community. This campaign expands from
year to year, introducing new sophisticated methods of falsifications,
provocations, and revanchist threats.
Times.am, August 14, 2013
The most recent examples of such a propaganda campaign are the circulation of
the July 26, 2013 letter in the United Nations calling upon the UN Member States
to warn their citizens against visiting the NKR 'without the prior authorization
of the government of Azerbaijan' as well as the publication of a list of people declared personae non gratae by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan because of their visits to the NKR.
This list of 335 individuals from 41 countries includes members of parliaments,
prominent public figures, culture and art professionals, journalists, students
and tourists.
In this respect the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the NKR deems appropriate
to state the following:
The NKR is an independent state with a population, which should not be
deprived of a possibility to exercise its fundamental human rights under any
circumstances as it is enshrined in Article 2 of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, which states that 'no distinction shall be made on the basis of
the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or
territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust,
non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.'
People of Nagorno Karabagh established their state exercising their
inalienable right to self-determination in full compliance with the norms and
principles of the international law and acting upon the then effective
constitutional and legal framework of the Soviet Union. Since the very first day
of its establishment the NKR, unlike Azerbaijan, has assumed the course of
building a democratic State ensuring all the rights and freedoms for its
citizens. The NKR leadership intends to continue the policy of comprehensive
development of the Republic and its democratic institutions, and has repeatedly
expressed its readiness for mutually beneficial cooperation with all interested
parties.
From the very beginning, Azerbaijan rejected any possibility of a civilized
dialogue with Nagorno Karabagh and adhered to the policy of settling the
conflict between Azerbaijan and Nagorno Karabagh through the application of
brutal, disproportionate, and indiscriminate force against the civilian population.
It carried out ethnic cleansings in Nagorno Karabagh proper and
Armenian-populated areas of Azerbaijan, unleashing full-fledged military
aggression against Nagorno Karabagh.
Despite the ongoing negotiation process and commitments undertaken since the
conclusion of the cease-fire agreement, the Azeri leadership continues to
interpret selectively the norms and principles of the international law, thus
escalating tension and mistrust, as well as ignoring the existing realities.
Deluded by its language of threats and hostility, Azerbaijan has made a step
forward in a wrong direction, and threatens with sanctions against the third
countries nationals visiting the NKR. Such a policy of Azerbaijan fits perfectly
into the logic of its domestic human rights record that it is striving to impose
upon foreign citizens.
These highly irresponsible steps thwart any attempts to establish an
atmosphere of trust between the NKR and the Republic of Azerbaijan, which would
be essential for the peaceful resolution of the conflict. They also hinder the
ongoing mediation efforts by the Minsk Group Co-Chairs of the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to find a comprehensive and lasting
solution to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Nagorno Karabagh.
It is meanwhile worth mentioning that in spite of the artificial impediments
created by the Azeri side, the number of tourists visiting the NKR steadily
grows: throughout its independent history tens of thousands of foreign citizens
have already visited the NKR, which testifies to the safe and secure environment
established by the freedom-loving people of Nagorno Karabagh, and growing
international interest in the rich cultural and historical heritage of our
native land. It is essential to note that the crime rate in the NKR is one of
the lowest in Europe, and no serious accident has ever been registered in our
country with participation of a foreign citizen.
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the NKR urges the authorities of
Azerbaijan to abandon counterproductive attempts to hinder visits of foreign
nationals to the NKR, and direct its energy and resources wasted on such
groundless and provocative actions towards settlement of substantial issues
between the parties to the conflict thus promoting peace and stability for the
whole fragile region of the South Caucasus.
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the NKR welcomes and encourages the
visits of foreign nationals, both officials and tourists, to the NKR. Such
visits and people to people contacts in general contribute to the creation of an
atmosphere of confidence and co-operation in the region and are essential for
the international community to get truthful and objective information about the
NKR."
Times.am, August 14, 2013
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