All the factions of the National Assembly of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) have issued a joint statement on President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Shushi on June 15, 2021.

The statement reads as follows: “After subjecting Western Armenians to genocide and seizing the historical cradle of the Armenian people in 1915, Turkey has sought to commit the same crime against Eastern Armenians for the past century. Thanks to the organized struggle of the Armenian people, those plans have always failed.

On September 27, 2020, taking advantage of the favorable conditions in the world and in the region, Turkey and Azerbaijan made another attempt to subject Armenians to genocide during hostilities after attacking the Republic of Artsakh through the involvement of international terrorist groups. As a result of forceful displacement of the Armenians from their historic homeland, thousands of people were deprived of their homeland, and hundreds of Armenian and Christian monuments were destroyed or desecrated.

We view the surprise visit of Erdogan to the seized territories of Artsakh, particularly the once thriving capital Shushi as a threat and a new attempt to show power. This is continuation of the opening of the “war trophy park” in Baku which implies new psychological and moral pressure against the Armenian people in the post-war period.

Erdogan’s provocative act in the region is an attempt to lead the Russian peacekeeping mission to failure and a plan to deal a blow to the fragile stability. This act of the President of Turkey presents a new challenge to not only Armenia and Artsakh, but also Russia and Iran.

We address international organizations, the Co-Chairing countries of the OSCE Minsk Group, particularly the Russian Federation to restrain Turkey’s aggressive ambitions that may lead to new danger.

All Armenians must unite and resist the new challenges in these difficult times.”