ArmInfo. Paris does not recognize the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. This is stated in the statement of the official representative of the French Foreign Ministry, published on the website of the department.
"On November 25, the Senate adopted a resolution calling for the recognition by the French authorities of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. During the debate prior to the vote, State Secretary of the Foreign Ministry Jean-Baptiste Lemoine recalled the position of the French government on this issue. France does not recognize the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic," - noted in the statement. At the same time, the French foreign ministry recalled that the duty of Paris as the co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group is to work on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through negotiations, adding in this regard that the issue of the future status of Nagorno-Karabakh and the outcome of these negotiations is not will and cannot be determined in advance and unilaterally.
"Our priority today should be to ensure the safe return of those displaced by the conflict of the past few weeks. In his address to the Senate, the Secretary of State also recalled that no state has yet recognized Nagorno-Karabakh," - noted in the statement of the French Foreign Ministry.
Paris reiterated its commitment to achieving a lasting solution to the conflict that takes into account the security and dignity of the peoples of the region. "France will continue to do everything in its power to stabilize the situation in the South Caucasus. Committed, within the appropriate framework of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship, to move forward on all parameters that have yet to be agreed upon after the November 9 ceasefire agreement, in particular, the half of the withdrawal foreign mercenaries involved in the conflict, or the protection of the historical and cultural heritage of the region, "the French Foreign Ministry noted, and in this context, also recalling the structured actions of the French side to provide humanitarian aid to the population affected by the conflict.
Note that on November 25, the French Senate, with 305 votes "for" and one against, adopted a resolution on the need to recognize the independence of Nagorno Karabakh, which was represented by 5 political factions.
The resolution, among other provisions, invites the French government to recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic; condemns the aggression of Azerbaijan against Artsakh with the participation of Turkey and foreign mercenaries, demanding the withdrawal of troops from the territories seized after September 27; also requires the government to make every effort to restore the negotiation process within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group, which will restore the borders from 1994, which in turn will ensure the safety of the Armenian population and the return of internally displaced persons, as well as protect the Armenian cultural and religious heritage. Pointing in the resolution to the Armenian pogroms in Baku, Sumgait, Kirovabad and Maragha, and referring to the reports of the Commission on Racism and Intolerance of the Council of Europe and the UN Committee on Racial Discrimination (CERD) on Azerbaijan, it was pointed out that it is impossible for the Armenian population to live in Azerbaijan.
The adoption by the French Senate of this resolution was already welcomed by the Armenian Foreign Ministry, Artsakh Foreign Ministry, Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I, RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
In Baku, they criticized this resolution, calling the document a piece of paper.