HRC 52nd Session: Item 3 – General Debate - Embassy of Armenia to Switzerland and Permanent Mission of Armenia to the UN office at Geneva

HRC 52nd Session: Item 3 – General Debate

17 March, 2023

Delivered by H.E. Mr. Andranik Hovhannisyan, Permanent Representative

President,

Armenia remains extremely alarmed with the humanitarian crisis resulting from the blockade of Lachin Corridor, the only road that connects Nagorno-Karabakh to the outside world. It impacts all walks of life in Nagorno-Karabakh crippling its economy and severely affecting first and foremost the vulnerable groups, such as children, elderly, disabled people. As the International Court of Justice stressed it leaves a “serious detrimental impact on the health and lives of individuals” and “may entail irreparable consequences” on their rights. This is an early warning signal for the looming ethnic cleansing.

The ICJ further ordered Azerbaijan to ensure unimpeded movement along the Lachin Corridor. Despite the calls of the UN SG and many others, Azerbaijan still fails to implement this binding decision. Moreover, it resorts to the use and threat of use of force. Recently the leadership of Azerbaijan has intensified claims against territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia. Meanwhile, the last military incident left three Armenians killed in Nagorno-Karabakh. Farmers and agricultural fields are the frequent targets in an effort to deny Armenians of local means of subsistence at a time when import of food to Nagorno-Karabakh is banned by the blockade.

Azerbaijan aims at creating unbearable living conditions for the indigenous Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh and wipe them out of their ancestral homes. On numerous occasions the highest leadership of Azerbaijan claimed that “the might is right” and “international law does not work”.

It remains to be seen if the international law can prevail in this humanitarian crisis. The deployment of the UN fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh is the bare minimum to this end.

I thank you.

MFA RA
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