Artsakh Foreign Minister Sergey Ghazaryan today attended a conference in Yerevan on the topic "Imperative of the International Recognition of the Republic of Artsakh".

Ghazaryan, according to his office, stressed that the international community had sufficient legal, historical and political grounds for the recognition of the Republic of Artsakh.

“The path taken by Artsakh to self-determination and independence fully complies with both international law and the legal norms of the Soviet Union at that time. The proclamation of the Republic 32 years ago was the only way to ensure the existence of the Artsakh people. On 10 October 1991, the people of Artsakh exercised their right to self-determination. Subsequently, Azerbaijan, trying to suppress the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination, resorted to resolving the conflict by force three times, thereby violating the requirements of international law and the UN Charter," the minister noted. 

Ghazaryan also stressed that even during the period of relative peace, Azerbaijan consistently pursued a policy of inciting ethnic hatred and discrimination.

"At the same time, for 30 years, official Baku has been sabotaging all attempts by international mediators, in particular the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing countries to resolve the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict on the basis of international law, each time refusing at the last moment the agreements reached on a compromise solution," he added. 

Referring to the blockade of Artsakh and its 120,000 people, which has lasted for more than seventy days, Ghazaryan described it as another example of Azerbaijan's policy of ethnic cleansing.

 Regarding the order issued by the International Court of Justice a few days ago, Ghazaryan noted: “The conclusions of the court allow us to characterize the policy of Azerbaijan, including the blockade of Artsakh, as a manifestation of deliberate discriminatory actions on the part of the Azerbaijani authorities. Recognition of the independence of Artsakh by the international community is a way to stop the massive and repeated violations of the Artsakh people’s rights."

In his speech, Ghazaryan also stressed the importance of consolidating the professional potential of Artsakh, Armenia and the diaspora.