Friday, September 29 2023 10:28

ArmInfo. Matthew Miller, Spokesperson for the U.S.  Department of State, refrained from  commenting on the Artsakh president's decree dissolving the Republic of Artsakh. 

Asked to comment on Karabakh Armenians' statement that "they will  cease to exist next year," Mr Miller said: 

"I don't have any specific comment on that. I think what I would  reiterate with respect to Nagorno- Karabakh is that overall, we think  it's important that the ceasefire be maintained, that the  humanitarian needs be addressed, and that an independent  international mission to provide transparency, reassurance, and  confidence to the residents of Nagorno-Karabakh be established as  soon as possible. That is our priority for dealing with the immediate  situation and one that we are working to get off the ground."

"So with respect to a Disaster Assistance Response Team, Ambassador  Power announced yesterday that USAID had deployed a Disaster  Assistance Response Team to coordinate the U.S. humanitarian  response.  That team will assess the situation and identify priority  needs to scale up assistance and work with partners to provide  urgently needed aid. And if you talk to USAID, they can provide you  more details about that," Miller said. 

As to how serious they are on the international mission, Azerbaijan  accepting that in any way, tens of thousands of Armenians who fled  Nagorno-Karabakh, Miller said:

"So we are quite serious about the international mission. We think  the international mission is important because it relates to all of  the other questions about humanitarian assistance, about humanitarian  needs in the region. We are so serious about the international  mission that the Secretary raised it in his call with President  Aliyev, pressed him to support an international mission. You may have  seen that the Azerbaijani Government came out yesterday and said that  they do support an international mission, and in fact in their  statement said one of the reasons they are supporting it is because  they have been pushed to support it by the United States.

"So we are quite clear on it. We're working with our allies and  partners on what the best mechanism to effectuate that is. But we  think it's important to provide transparency and to assure that  humanitarian needs are being addressed on the ground."

Asked to elaborate on the international observation mission, Mr  Miller said: 

"I can't preview specifics right now because it is a matter that is  ongoing with a number of allies and partners in the region. Both  under what auspices that mission would be launched, who would  participate, what its scope would be, what it would look like - all  those things are under discussion. So I don't want to make any kind  of a - I don't want to make any kind of announcement before we've  nailed down the details.  But it is a matter we are working on."

As to Azerbaijan's foreign ministry urged Armenians of Karabakh to  become part of the multiethnic Azerbaijani society and a statement on  an online portal to register Armenian residents in Karabakh to  provide services to them services, Mr Miller said: 

"I will say that we continue to be greatly concerned about the  humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh.  We think it's important  that residents of Nagorno-Karabakh be able to make the decision to  leave if they want to leave and to be able to return if they want to  return. It's a decision that they all have to make as individuals,  but we think it's important that they be able to make that decision  for themselves. And we think there ought to be unhindered  humanitarian access to the region to make sure that populations in  need can get the support that they require.

"Again, I'll go back to the international mission. We think to best  effectuate that it is important that an international mission be  established to ensure that those humanitarian needs are addressed."