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ARMENIAN ASSEMBLY ENCOURAGED BY NOGORNO KARABAKH PRINCIPLES SIGNED AT TRILATERAL MEETING

Politics

The Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a joint declaration with respect to the Nagorno Karabakh peace process, which took place under the auspices of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Moscow, along with the U.S. and French Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Co-Chairs Matt Bryza and Bernard Fassier, reported the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly).

This marks the first time since the 1994 truce, which established a cease-fire that such an agreement has been signed by the parties. The core of the document commits the parties to the OSCE peaceful political process. Medvedev stated that this "will facilitate the improvement of the situation in the South Caucasus and establishment of stability and security in the region."

In the wake of the August 2008 conflict in Georgia, decreasing oil prices, global financial instability and the intensified Karabakh negotiations under the leadership of Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, this is an important development. Azerbaijan's initial reaction to the outbreak of hostilities in South Ossetia was to call for a similar attack against the Nagorno Karabakh Republic.

The joint declaration is significant because it marks a break from Azerbaijan's recalcitrant stance and increased war rhetoric, including President Ilham Aliyev's recent statement that "the war is not over, only the first stage has ended and we are ready to liberate our lands at any moment." The recommitment to the OSCE framework rules out a military solution as repeatedly espoused by Azerbaijan and will hopefully mark an end to Azerbaijan's war rhetoric, which also resurfaced in mid-October during and after the Presidential election in Azerbaijan.

"The Armenian Assembly commends President Serzh Sargsyan and his Administration for securing a public, legal commitment from Azerbaijan to adhere to the OSCE process," stated Hirair Hovnanian, Assembly Chairman of the Board of Trustees. "The Assembly has consistently believed that whatever the final outcome to the peace process is, that it must be acceptable to the people of Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia, and President Sargsyan has called for active public debate based on the interests of the Armenian people. The brave people of Nagorno Karabakh have fiercely defended their homeland and have made the ultimate sacrifice. Under President Sargsyan's steady hand, Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh have stood firm in the face of adversity as Azerbaijan sought to purge our people from our ancestral homeland, and inexplicably continues its saber-rattling rhetoric," continued Hovnanian.

In the late 1980s, Nagorno Karabakh began its peaceful and legal movement for independence pursuant to Soviet law. Azerbaijan's solution was to attempt to eliminate the problem by wiping out the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh and in Azerbaijan, including progroms in Sumgait and Baku that targeted Armenians, Russians and Jews. A cease-fire was brokered in 1994, of which since that time, there have been numerous proposals put forward to resolve the conflict, including the 2001 "Key West" talks, which Armenia accepted and Azerbaijan backed away from. A proposal in 2007 was leaked to the media and only served to embolden Aliyev's bellicose actions, whose country used windfall oil profits to finance a massive military build up and continues its attempt to isolate Armenia through pipeline by-pass routes and other means.

Any resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict must take into account the facts on the ground, ensure the legitimate safety and security needs of Karabakh's citizenry, as well as the right to self-determination. The Assembly has been critically involved with the Nagorno Kabarakh movement from the beginning. The Assembly notes that the opposition in Armenia had suspended its activities to allow for this development to take place, as well as developments with respect to Turkey-Armenia relations.

The Assembly also recalls the support of the United States for the fundamental rights and the aspirations of the people of Nagorno Karabakh and for a peaceful and fair settlement as evidenced by passage of S.J.Res. 178 in the U.S. Senate, as well as, other statements and actions taken by the U.S. Congress over the last 20 years, including passage of Assembly-initiated Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act, which restricted assistance to Azerbaijan until it ceased its hostile and offensive actions, as well as humanitarian assistance to help the people of Artsakh rebuild after the devastating effects of the war that was thrust upon them by Azerbaijan. In addition, to help facilitate the peace process, the U.S. Congress consistently allocated funds for confidence building measures (CBMs) among the parties, which were routinely rejected by Azerbaijan. Instead of pursuing CBMs, the Azerbaijani military desecrated a centuries old Armenian cemetery in Julfa. The Christian cemetery dated back to medieval times and was filled with scores of historic stone monuments engraved with ancient crosses of historic Armenian design.