RA Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan delivered a speech at the meeting of the Eastern Partnership foreign ministers.
We present it below:
.Mr. High Representative,
Mr. Secretary-General,
Dear colleagues,
I am glad that we were finally able to meet after the long-protracted restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. We are also eagerly awaiting the upcoming summit, where the leaders of our states and governments will have the opportunity to discuss the future of the Eastern Partnership (EaP), in which, I am sure, we are all greatly interested.
I would have been pleased to deliver a speech and talk about the development agenda between Armenia and the European Union countries, presenting in detail the progress of the implementation of the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement between the Republic of Armenia and the EU, which entered into force on 1 March 2021, emphasising the importance of our agreements with “Europol” and “Horizon Europe”, the Common Aviation Agreement signed an hour ago, cooperation with “Creative Europe” and “Eurojust”, as well as cooperation in other directions, sharing Armenia’s recorded successes in the fight against corruption, in strengthening democratic institutions and the rule of law, as well as speaking about the parliamentary elections held in Armenia, which were recognised by the relevant international observer missions as democratic, free and transparent. I would like to reaffirm Armenia’s position regarding the future of the Eastern Partnership and its commitment to values-based cooperation. However, this meeting is taking place under quite extraordinary circumstances, when the Armenian people and democracy have been under the constant threat of the use of force since at least September 2020.
Dear colleagues,
Contrary to the UN Secretary-General’s call for a global ceasefire, Azerbaijan unleashed military aggression against the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, seriously endangering the regional situation. Moreover, they attempted to create a dangerous precedent of trying to resolve protracted conflicts in Europe through the massive use of force and the involvement of foreign armed terrorists and mercenaries from the Middle East and North Africa. Violating the three ceasefire agreements, Azerbaijan finally agreed to cease military operations with the 9 November trilateral statement.
And yet, the situation in the region remains fragile. Security and realities cannot be built on the basis of massive violations of human rights, thousands of lost human lives, losses, displacements and the undermining of the international peace process. The use of force against a people striving to realise its fundamental rights, including the right to a free and secure life and the right to self-determination, cannot be a means of resolving the conflict. And all the statements of official Baku that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict no longer exists do not correspond to reality, since the root cause of the conflict remains unaddressed. We are convinced that the conflict must find its political solution under the auspices and within the mandate of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship.
I call on all partners interested in the comprehensive settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to express unconditional and full support for the peace process under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship.”
