Armenian President: Unresolved Karabakh conflict should not have any  impact on the rights of the population of Artsakh

ArmInfo. Armenianophobia in Azerbaijan has become a fundamental and inalienable component of state policy. This was stated during the speech at the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan on September 19 at the UN headquarters in New York.

The Armenian leader noted that he was speaking for the fifth time  from a high rostrum and was again forced to talk about the  Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. "I would prefer to talk about peace,  progress and cooperation, but, unfortunately, we are still very far  from this stage. Therefore, I consider it my duty to explain why we  are so far from this desired shelter. The new stage of the struggle  of the people of Artsakh for self-determination began almost 30 years  ago. In response to peaceful appeals to the exercise of the  inalienable right of the Artsakh Armenians to self-determination and  the steps taken in this direction, Azerbaijan resorted to the use of  force. The peak of this policy of official Baku was pogroms of the  Armenian population of Azerbaijan, ethnic cleansing and mass  evictions. Of the entire regions once populated by Armenians,  Armenians are expelled, and the Azerbaijani government continues to  consistently destroy the huge cultural and spiritual Armenian  heritage under its control. It is obvious that under these conditions  the people of Artsakh had no choice but to turn to self-defense, "the  Armenian leader said.

According to him, the heavy war of 1992-1994, its consequences and  then the ongoing negotiations did not become a lesson for Azerbaijan,  and the four-day war unleashed by Azerbaijan in April last year  proved that Azerbaijan continues to pursue its goal of exterminating  the people of Artsakh. "During the deployed in 2016, the armed forces  of Azerbaijan committed a number of war crimes against the civilian  population and prisoners of war. I can not fail to note here that one  serviceman who committed such a barbarity was awarded a high state  award. This award was handed to him personally by the President of  Azerbaijan personally. Already for years, Armenian phobia in  Azerbaijan has become a fundamental and inalienable component of  state policy. It is deeply rooted in school textbooks and poisons the  thinking of the younger generation of this country. Over the years,  we have signaled this in a number of professional intergovernmental  and non-governmental organizations dealing with the issues of racism  and xenophobia, "Sargsyan said. At the same time, he stressed that  all this leads us to the conviction that the realization of the right  of the people of Artsakh to self-determination is of vital  importance. Sargsyan stated that in this issue he expresses a unified  point of view not only for Armenia and Artsakh, but for Armenians all  over the world. "I brought this message from Yerevan, where the  Armenia-Diaspora conference is taking place these days. Everyone  should realize that now Azerbaijan is simply a symbol of medieval  backwardness for a developing democratic way of Artsakh. Azerbaijan  has no legal and moral grounds for presenting claims against Artsakh.  Artsakh has never been a part of independent Azerbaijan, therefore,  the aspirations of forcing Artsakh to this state formation are  unfair. Free Artsakh today held a democratic society. Our common  motto and commitment "No one should be deprived of attention" should  become the cornerstone of the activities of this family of the United  Nations. It is for this reason, I am sure, the people of Artsakh will  never be isolated from the realization of the goals of stable  development. I am deeply convinced that the unresolved  Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should not have any influence on the rights  of the population of Artsakh. I speak, first of all, about the  inalienable right of any human being. I am talking about the right to  life, the right to organize public life, the right to freely form  one's own power, the right to freely communicate with the outside  world and many other rights, "he said. At the same time, he stressed  that Armenia has contributed and will consistently contribute to  improving the life of the people of Artsakh, its stable and  democratic development. Sargsyan stressed that no one has the right  to interfere with the initiatives and programs carried out in these  areas. "The legal status of Artsakh, and more specifically, the  absence of international legal recognition, is not an obstacle to the  realization of the rights of women and men living there. We are  convinced that the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict has  no alternative.  Now, from this high rostrum, I confirm our  determination in this regard. At the same time, everyone should  realize that the problem of Nagorno-Karabakh is a human rights issue.  It can be resolved only through one of the fundamental and  inalienable human rights - the free self-determination of the people,  "the Armenian leader noted. According to him, no matter what variant  of the settlement they come to, all the same, the Republic of Artsakh  can not have a lower status and enjoy less freedom than it has today.  "Azerbaijan must recognize and respect the right of the people of  Artsakh to determine their future by free will, and the security of  Artsakh Armenians must be guaranteed by all possible international  and domestic mechanisms.  All other questions are derived. All other  issues will find their logical and fair solution in parallel with the  settlement of the problem, "Sargsyan concluded.