Artsakh NA appealed to the participants of the conference of high-ranking representatives of the European Union to be held in Yerevan.
Based on the fundamental principles of international law, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the norms of international humanitarian law, the National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh, as a representative body endowed with the primary mandate of the Artsakh Armenians, addresses the participants of the conference to be held in Yerevan and the international community with this message.
The military aggression carried out by Azerbaijan in 2020 and 2023, accompanied by obvious manifestations of genocidal acts, led to the forced displacement of around 150,000 Armenians from their historical homeland. It is also a fact that the inadequate response of international actors and geopolitical centers created quite favorable conditions for the use of force and new crimes against humanity.
Currently, Azerbaijan, taking advantage of the silence of the international community, is consistently carrying out cultural genocide. In the occupied territories of Artsakh, samples of Armenian Christian cultural heritage - churches, khachkars, cemeteries, structures that are symbols of statehood - are systematically destroyed or appropriated, which aims to eliminate the thousand-year-old Armenian civilizational trace from the region.
Based on the created crisis situation and adhering to the principles of justice and protection of human rights, the National Assembly of Artsakh demands:
To give a direct assessment by international structures to the genocidal policy and cultural vandalism carried out by Azerbaijan, recognizing them as gross violations of international law.
Apply effective mechanisms and sanctions against Azerbaijan to prevent further destruction of Armenian historical and cultural values.
Immediately dispatch an international independent monitoring mission in order to document the state of cultural monuments in the territory of Artsakh and guarantee their protection.
Apply political pressure on Baku to immediately and unconditionally release all prisoners of war and hostages illegally held in Azerbaijan, including representatives of the military-political leadership of Artsakh.
To organize the collective, safe and dignified return of Artsakh Armenians to their native homes under effective international legal and security guarantees, ensuring their inalienable right to self-determination and control of their own destiny.
Silence is complicity. We expect the European Union and civilized countries to act not in the realm of declarative statements, but in the realm of practical steps for the sake of justice and regional stability.
