OSCE, Alm.del - 2022-23 (2. samling) - Bilag 4: Letter of the Delegation of Azerbaijan to OSCE PA Special Representative on South Caucasus

OSCEs Parlamentariske Forsamling 2022-23 (2. samling)
OSCE Alm.del Bilag 4
Offentligt

AZƏRBAYCAN RESPUBLİKASI

MİLLİ MƏCLİSİNİN

ATƏT PA-da NÜMAYƏNDƏ HEYƏTİ

DELEGATION OF THE MILLI MAJLIS

OF THE REPUBLIC OF AZERBAIJAN

TO THE OSCE PA

TO: Mr. Pere Joan Pons

OSCE PA Vice-President and Special Representative on South Caucasus

CC: OSCE PA Bureue Members, Delegations to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly,

OSCE PA International Secretariat

Baku, 26 January 2023

Dear Vice-President Pons,

Dear Pere,

The Delegation of Azerbaijan to the OSCE PA would like to bring to your attention the following

5 points in connection to your public statement dated on 24 January 2023 concerning the

situation on the Lachin road, which are of paramount of importance for understanding and also

objectively and fairly assessing the real situation on the ground:

Constructively addressing the issues and legitimate ecological concerns raised by

Azerbaijani NGOs and eco-activists

For 44 days now in a row, the representatives of Azerbaijani non-governmental organizations

and eco-activists have been picketing on the Lachin-Khankendi road against illegal exploitation

and pillage of natural resources in the Garabagh region of Azerbaijan where Russian

peacekeepers have been temporarily deployed, especially in the Gyzylbulag gold and Demirli

copper- molybdenum deposits.

There are undeniable facts and evidence of depredatory exploitation and depletion of the mining

sites, cutting thousands of hectares of forests, hazardous leaks from tailing dumps and ponds

and many other cases of pollution which severely damaged the environment of the region.

On 3 December 2022 the officials of relevant state institutions of Azerbaijan held discussions

with the command of the Russian peacekeeping forces, with participation of representatives

from local Armenian residents and agreement was reached to conduct on-site inspection of

mentioned mineral deposits to assess of potential environmental damage and risks, including

impact on underground and surface water sources, but after a week of this agreement, the

access of monitoring group to the mining sites were artificially prevented by the instructed and

unidentified persons.

Subsequent discussions with the Russian peacekeeping contingent’s command to implement

the previously reached agreement did not yield result. Accordingly, such negligence and

irresponsible actions caused justified indignation of the NGOs, environmentalists and civil

society activists which led to peaceful protests on the Shusha-Lachin road continuing to date.

The demands of the representatives of civil society are quite simple: to put an end to the illegal

exploitation and plunder of the natural resources of Azerbaijan and not to impede a work of

transparent monitoring mission in these mines.

OSCE, Alm.del - 2022-23 (2. samling) - Bilag 4: Letter of the Delegation of Azerbaijan to OSCE PA Special Representative on South Caucasus

It would be wrong and unacceptable to dismiss Azerbaijan’s relevant state and civil society

institutions’ abovementioned demands as purely the ecological concerns themselves deserve to

be treated with same seriousness and urgency by all those who raised the issue, exclusively in

the humanitarian context.

Misrepresentation of humanitarian situation on the ground with political purposes

Unfortunately, Armenia and its strong lobby groups are deliberately distorting the

nature of the peaceful protest of Azerbaijani NGOs, misleading the international community by

spreading groundless information and false alarm of a “blockade” of Armenians living in

Garabakh and exposing them to a “humanitarian catastrophe” or “ethnic cleansing”.

The Delegation of Azerbaijan has already officially informed the OSCE PA President Cederfelt

and would like to reiterate again that Azerbaijan has not put any restriction on the traffic along

the

Lachin

road.

enough

mention

that

since

the

peaceful protests started, a total of 1138 vehicles of the Russian peacekeeping contingent, the

ICRC and local Armenian residents passed in both directions along the Lachin road without any

impediment. There is no obstruction whatsoever as to the supply of goods for the use of local

residents or in terms of delivery of essential medical services. No single local resident was

denied to pass. No humanitarian or civil vehicles denied passage at all.

Nevertheless, the Government of Azerbaijan on several occasions over the past weeks

declared its readiness to address any humanitarian concern of our citizens of Armenian origin

on the ground.

Now, it becomes clear that the main target of Armenian propaganda machine in making such a

big fuss and false alarm over the “humanitarian catastrophe” is to evade responsibility of

Armenian leadership for its illegal activity in this area and also not to allow of Azerbaijani expert

group to monitor the ecological situation on its own internationally recognized sovereign

territories in gross violations of all international legal norms, international conventions and

Constitution of Azerbaijan.

Misusing of Lachin road in blatant violation of the Trilateral Statement of 10 November

2020

As you know, the Delegation of Azerbaijan has many times expressed its serious concern at the

OSCE PA sessions and events on blatant violations of the Trilateral Statement of November

2020 by Armenia, in particular its para 4, 6 and 9.

According to para 4, Armenia has committed to withdraw the remnants of its illegal armed forces

from Azerbaijan, but this commitment has not been implemented yet.

Under the para 6, Lachin road shall only be used for humanitarian purposes, namely for

movement of citizens, vehicles and goods. In fact, this provision has been also grossly violated

by Armenia as Lachin road is being misused for an illegal military build-up of this country,

rotation of its armed forces and illegal transfer of weapons and personnel in Garabagh as well

as for the trafficking of minerals and other wealth from the area of temporary deployment of

peacekeeping contingent to Armenia and elsewhere.

Of particular concern is the transfer via the Lachin road and implantation in the territories of

Azerbaijan of new anti-personnel mines produced in Armenia in 2021, i.e. after the signing of

the trilateral statement in November 2020. As a matter of fact, since August 2022, some 2728

pieces of anti- personnel landmines produced in Armenia in 2021 have been found in the

territories of Azerbaijan. Unfortunately, the mines already killed or maimed some 282 innocent

Azerbaijanis for the last 2 years of the post-conflict period.

OSCE, Alm.del - 2022-23 (2. samling) - Bilag 4: Letter of the Delegation of Azerbaijan to OSCE PA Special Representative on South Caucasus

The continuation of planting of mines demonstrates a clear intention of Armenia to inflict as

much human cost as possible on Azerbaijan in order to impede the large-scale restoration and

reconstruction work carried out in liberated territories and return of former IDPs to their place of

origin.

Resumption of a constructive dialogue and interaction of Azerbaijani authority with its

Armenian citizens residing in Garabagh

As there are calls for dialogue, it should be reminded that Azerbaijan has consistently counted

on dialogue in addressing issues in the context of post-conflict stabilization. This includes

interaction with local Armenian residents in many areas of mutual interest and pertinent for

reintegration agenda.

Azerbaijan has been consistent and clear in expressing its resolve to reintegrate its citizens of

Armenian origin into its political, social, and economic space in accordance with the legislation

and Constitution of Azerbaijan, guaranteeing equal rights to all of its citizens regardless of their

national or ethnic origin.

To this end, Azerbaijan has taken consistent and successful efforts to build interactions with

local Armenian residents, thus solving important issues of water, transportation and energy

supply in the region. These contacts need to be encouraged and sustained.

However, this interaction was interrupted after illegal arrival of Russian made billionaire Ruben

Vardanyan, a person known for dirty business schemes, to Garabakh last September. For a

man who never lived in Garabagh and just recently renounced his Russian citizenship in a blaze

of publicity, surprisingly left a lot behind. The installation of Vardanyan in Garabagh and self-

proclamation him as “state minister” has a single agenda: to torpedo both re-integration and

reconciliation process of the area where Russian peacekeeping contingent have temporarily

stationed. Moreover, a fugitive banker Vardanyan’s destabilizing and destructive existence in

Garabakh negatively impact on Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process consequently to keep a

tension alive.

It is not coincident that, Vardanyan makes serious obstacles for some civilians wishing to travel

through Lachin road in order to make a false impression of non-existence “blockade”,

“humanitarian catastrophe”, “genocide”, “ethnic cleansing” of “120k Armenians”. Let alone to

mention the fact of obstruction of Azerbaijani monitoring mission in the mines sites by the

provocative group led by Vardanyan which still continues to date.

Azerbaijani authorities have shown considerable restraint, but will not engage with such

instructed spoiler and “stranger” as Ruben Vardanyan with dubious record, who was

deliberately implanted from outside into the Garabagh region of Azerbaijan to derail the fragile

peace-building process.

OSCE PA’s support to the peace process and normalization of inter-state relations

between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Despite devastating consequences and unhealed wounds of war and occupation, it was

Azerbaijan which, after the end of the conflict, initiated the process of normalizing inter-State

relations with Armenia based on five basic principles that include mutual recognition and respect

for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within their internationally recognized

borders; delimitation and demarcation of the State border; the soonest conclusion of a peace

treaty; and the opening of transport communications in the region.

At the meetings held last year in Brussels, Prague and Sochi at the highest level both sides

confirmed their mutual recognition of each other’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and

inviolability of borders. This can lead to and provide a good basis for the peace treaty.

OSCE, Alm.del - 2022-23 (2. samling) - Bilag 4: Letter of the Delegation of Azerbaijan to OSCE PA Special Representative on South Caucasus

However, despite the strong support from the international community for this initiative and the

diplomatic efforts made to move the normalization agenda forward, the progress remains

limited. Armenia seems to stick to its past practice of imitation of negotiations and, instead of

good-faith implementation of its commitments, continues to artificially delay the practical work

on different tracks by putting forward groundless preconditions.

In conclusion, Delegation of Azerbaijan truly appreciates the OSCE PA reediness to support

peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan in an unbiased manner and ensure the

advancement of constructive negotiations, based on the principles of the Helsinki Final Act.

Sincerely,

Azay Guliyev

Head of the Delegation of Azerbaijan to the OSCE PA