The resolutions on Nagorno-Karabakh submitted to the U.N. General Assembly by Azerbaijan were a destructive step, which can cause serious damage to the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process, RA Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian stated at his September 1 meeting with the students of the International Relations Department, Yerevan State University.

Most of the U.S. member-states hold the opinion that such issues must not be put on the General Assembly agenda, but should be discussed in the previously established format. This is the reason why only 39 of the 192 member-states supported the Azerbaijan-submitted resolution in 2008, most of them being the members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the Minister said. None of the five U.S. Security Council permanent members voted for the resolution, and the Co-Chair countries voted against it. Azerbaijan is exploiting the OIC. Any attempts to add a religious component to such problems are most dangerous, Nalbandian said.

As to Armenia’s steps to counterbalance Azerbaijan’s initiative, Nalbandian said: “Diplomacy is like an iceberg. Its visible part is very small. It is the part much is not spoken of. Otherwise expectations may fail. Yes, we are taking necessary steps. The international community’s recent approaches to the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem are similar to ours. Do you think such approaches come out of nothing? While Azerbaijan disrespects the most important principle of international law, nonuse and no threat of force, the international community considers this principle a basic one in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process.”

According to the Minister, it is the result of relevant steps, and there is no need for going into diplomatic particulars. “Be sure, everything possible is being done for a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem on the basis of international legal norms. The self-determination principle is one of the fundamental ones, by means of which the most important issue, Nagorno-Karabakh’s status, must be settled,” Nalbandian said.

NEWS.am reminds readers that Azerbaijan plans to submit a draft resolution on observation of norms of international humanitarian law and international human rights standards in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan to the U.N. General Assembly, September 9.
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