Artsakh Union strongly condemns the staged diplomatic tour organized by Azerbaijan on September 11–12 to occupied Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), which involved 150 representatives from the diplomatic corps of 58 countries and 9 international organizations, Artsakh Union noted in a statement. The latter continues as follows:

“This visit is yet another episode in the Aliyev regime’s years-long, systematic campaign to legitimize the occupation and ethnic cleansing of Artsakh in the eyes of the international community by disguising these atrocities as "revival" and “development.”

The public park presented to foreign diplomats in Stepanakert was built directly over demolished Armenian homes and monuments - blatant evidence of a continuing policy of genocide and occupation.

During the tour, Hikmet Hajiyev, aide to the Azerbaijani president, falsely presented the ancient Armenian monastic complexes of Gandzasar and Dadivank to foreign diplomats as ancient “Caucasian Albanian” heritage, linking them to a purported “Caucasian Albanian Prince Hasan Jalal.” In historical reality, the Hasan-Jalalyan dynasty was an Armenian princely house, and both monasteries functioned for centuries as active centers of the Armenian Apostolic Church, featuring Armenian-language inscriptions and an unbroken tradition of Armenian liturgy. This is a deliberate continuation of Baku’s “Albanianization” policy, which seeks to systematically strip the Armenian people of their historical claim to Artsakh's Christian heritage.

During the same tour, Hajiyev repeated further fabrications, claiming that the ancient Armenian manuscripts displayed at Gandzasar (in fact, copies of the originals) were “forgeries,” and that both Gandzasar and Dadivank suffered “distortions” under the guise of restoration during the years of Armenian administration. Such accusations come from the very side that, according to extensive independent evidence, is directly responsible for destroying, defacing, or appropriating Armenian churches, khachkars (cross-stones), tombstones, and other monuments across Artsakh.

In this context, Artsakh Union President Artak Beglaryan stated:

“Azerbaijan continues to use visits by diplomatic delegations as a tool to present its genocidal destruction and forcible erasure of identity in Artsakh under the guise of ‘restoration.’ We call on responsible members of the international community not to become instruments for legitimizing these crimes and rewriting history, but instead to demand an independent, transparent investigation and speak out publicly against the forced displacement of the people of Artsakh, the destruction of their heritage, and the systematic violation of their fundamental rights.”

We recall that the legally binding International Court of Justice (ICJ) Order of November 17, 2023, obligates Azerbaijan to ensure the safe, unhindered, and swift return of persons displaced after September 19, 2023; to prevent their further forced displacement; to protect and preserve their identity and property documents and records; and reaffirms the Court's earlier orders of 2021 and 2023.

We further recall the joint statement issued by 40 states on October 11, 2023, at the 54th Session of the UN Human Rights Council, which explicitly demanded that Azerbaijan guarantee the safe, dignified, and sustainable return of the indigenous population, protect Armenian cultural and religious heritage, and ensure independent international access to and monitoring of Artsakh. The diplomatic corps taking part in this tour includes representatives of several states that signed that very statement — making their participation in Azerbaijan's unilaterally organized, tightly curated tour a direct contradiction of their own governments' formal commitments.

In light of the above, we demand:

1. Ensure Immediate International Monitoring — Grant UNESCO and other independent expert international missions immediate and unhindered, ongoing access to all Armenian historical, cultural, and religious monuments in Artsakh to independently document their condition, in line with the ICJ Order of November 17, 2023, the October 11, 2023 joint statement of 40 UN member states, and relevant European Parliament resolutions.

2. Boycott Staged State Tours — Member states of the diplomatic corps and international organizations must decline to participate in tours organized and escorted by the Azerbaijani state until genuine guarantees of independent verification, transparency, and Armenian-side participation are in place.

3. Issue Principled Public Assessments — Diplomats and other figures who have already taken part, or will take part in the future, must issue clear public assessments of the forced displacement of Artsakh's indigenous Armenian population and the destruction and appropriation of its cultural and religious heritage, rather than serving as instruments of Azerbaijani propaganda and international legitimization.

4. Demand Formal Action from Armenian Authorities — As guarantor of the rights and interests of the Armenian people and host state for those forcibly displaced from Artsakh, the Government of the Republic of Armenia must respond officially and publicly to this tour and to Azerbaijan's policy of historical falsification, and consistently defend the rights of the people of Artsakh on all international platforms.

5. Uphold the Right of Return and Secure Hostage Releases — We reiterate the right of Artsakh's roughly 150,000 forcibly displaced residents to a safe and dignified return, and the urgent need for the immediate release of the Armenian hostages held in Baku — both minimum preconditions for stable and lasting peace in the region.

The Artsakh issue can only be closed once the collective and individual rights of the people of Artsakh are fully restored and firmly and durably guaranteed by the international community.”