The Nagorno-Karabakh Armenian heritage, which has a rich history of millennia, is facing the threat of destruction and identity distortion by Azerbaijan. This was announced by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, Vahan Kostanyan, during his address at a forum held jointly with UNESCO in Yerevan—and which is dedicated to the preservation of cultural heritage, Armenpress reports.

According to Kostanyan, attacks on cultural heritage are increasing in the modern world, and the denial of cultural identity is used as a tool to escalate conflicts and undermine international stability.

False rhetoric is used, making culture a divisive tool rather than a unifying factor. Even nowadays, the legally binding principles of international conventions and the legally binding decisions of the UN International Court of Justice are ignored, creating dangerous precedents that threaten the global system of cultural protection and reflect the weakening of international multilateral institutions and mechanisms, Kostanyan noted.

According to him, these dire realities have had serious consequences in the South Caucasus also, in particular, in Nagorno-Karabakh, whose Armenian heritage with a rich history of millennia is facing the threat of destruction and identity distortion by Azerbaijan.

According to the deputy FM of Armenia, in order to withstand such serious threats, it is more than ever necessary to strengthen the institutions and tools aimed at preserving the cultural heritage, as well as to study innovative ways to preserve the shared heritage of humanity.