Armenia’s Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Ambassador Armen Papikyan, addressed in detail during a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council the humanitarian crisis situation created in Artsakh as a result of the blockade of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan since 12 December 2022.
The Ambassador stressed that for two months now the people of Nagorno-Karabakh have been under a de facto blockade, with supplies of food and medicine almost entirely halted.
It was emphasized that under freezing winter conditions, Azerbaijan’s deliberate periodic cuts to the gas supply, the intentional disruption of electricity across the entire territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, and the creation of unbearable conditions for survival have one purpose: to force the Armenian population of Artsakh to leave their homes and to deprive them of the right to live in their homeland.
In his remarks, the Permanent Representative of Armenia noted that Azerbaijan’s claims that free movement through the Lachin corridor is ensured do not correspond to reality.
Calling on the member states of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to increase pressure on Azerbaijan, Ambassador Papikyan highly appreciated the clear statements and positions made so far by a number of OSCE participating countries, which call on Azerbaijan to lift the blockade immediately and without preconditions and to guarantee free and unimpeded movement through the Lachin corridor, which, however, is not sufficient.
Ambassador Papikyan stressed that the dispatch of an international fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin corridor is imperative in order to assess the humanitarian situation on the ground and to prevent a new attack.
Armen Papikyan added that, in violation of the standards of international humanitarian law and the 9 November trilateral statement, Azerbaijan continues to hold Armenian prisoners of war and civilians hostage, while the fates of many forcibly disappeared persons remain unknown. The destruction of the Armenian historical, cultural and religious heritage of Artsakh in the territories that have come under Azerbaijani control continues. The dispatch of a UNESCO fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent territories is still being rejected by Azerbaijan.
