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“One cannot eliminate the consequences of this conflict without addressing its causes. And when speaking about the causes… we talk about recognising the people of Nagorno-Karabakh’s right of self determination… the recognition of this right and its implementation. The other problems will be solved rapidly after that,” Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said in an interview with Euronews.

“The Armenian parts of this conflict, Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, are profoundly interested in a swift resolution of this conflict. But a sustainable resolution that would allow for peace and security in the region, as opposed to giving Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh, which would spell the end of its existence,” President said.

Referring to Euronews inquiry “Azerbaijan states very clearly that it will never ever accept Nagorno-Karabakh as an independent entity. They will never let it go”, Serzh Sargsyan said:

“What does the international community propose to us? To solve this conflict on the basis of three principles of international law: firstly, self-determination; secondly, territorial integrity; and thirdly, the non-use of force. I propose, through you, the media, to appeal to Azerbaijan to sign an agreement not to use force. This would instill trust in the Armenian people of Karabakh and Armenia. And under these conditions of trust we would begin the negotiations for a settlement. We Armenians know very well what Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity means. We’ve talked about it openly several times. The Azerbaijanis… can they say what the right of self-determination means for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh?

When we issue joint declarations about the right of self-determination, Azerbaijan is not talking about the Armenian people’s right to self-determination but of the right of the main player in the conflict… the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.”

The Nagorno-Karabakh (armed) conflict broke out back in 1991, when, subsequent to the demand for self-determination of the Nagorno-Karabakh people, Azerbaijani authorities attempted to resolve the issue through ethnic cleansings, carried out by Soviet security forces (KGB special units) under the pretext of the implementation of the passport regime and by launching of large-scale military operations, which left thousands dead and caused considerable material damage. A cease-fire agreement was established in 1994. Negotiations on the settlement of the conflict are being conducted under the mediation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs (Russia, USA, France) and on the basis of their Madrid proposals, presented in November, 2007.

Azerbaijan has not yet implemented the 4 resolutions of the UN Security Council adopted in 1993, by continuing to provoke arms race in the region and openly violating one of the basic principles of the international law non-use of force or threat of force.