The controversy over the airport in Stepanakert, the capital of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) to be settled by Armenia and Azerbaijan, said Public Information Officer of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Denis Chagnon in an interview to the Mediamax news agency.

As to Azeri officials’ statements on their tight to shoot down airplanes flying to Stepenakert, Chagnon pointed out Article 3bis of the ICAO Charter.

“The contracting states recognize that every state must refrain from resorting to the use of weapons against civil aircraft in flight and that, in case of interception, the lives of persons on board and the safety of aircraft must not be endangered. This provision shall not be interpreted as modifying in any way the rights and obligations of states set by the Charter of the United Nations,” reads the Article 3bis.

Flights require the permission of the airport of departure and airport of destination, Chagnon said. Responding to a remark that Azerbaijan has no sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh and, therefore, cannot issue permissions for flights to Stepanakert, Chagnon said that the issue must be settled by the countries on a bilateral basis.

The planned opening of a new airport in Stepanakert caused indignation in Azerbaijan, including threats to shoot down airplanes. In response, on March 31, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan stated he would be the first passenger of the first Yerevan-Stepanakert flight.