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On April 20 at the PACE Ordinary Session launched in Strasbourg Hermine Naghdalyan, Head of the Armenian Delegation to the PACE, the NA Deputy Speaker, delivered a speech once again focusing the attention of Europe on Turkey’s policy of falsification and bellicose statements and provocations damaging the peaceful solution of the conflict by Azerbaijan. Mrs Naghdalyan called on the PACE to avoid a new spark over the conflict which can cause the report being prepared about Nagorno Karabakh.

We present the speech completely below:

“Dear Colleagues,

A week before on the eve of the centenary of the Armenian Genocide Ms Anne Brasseur, President of the Assembly visited Armenia. The agenda of her visit was full and useful in terms of many issues crucial for our country and the region. The President speaking on the genocide especially underlined the importance of facing own past and moving forward.

Unfortunately, Turkey not only doesn’t accept its past, but indeed implements the policy of history falsification. Today, we see how this country displays itself as a safe harbour for refugees, what is more cynical is that Turkey claims to be this safe harbour starting from the Ottoman Empire times when Armenians, Greeks, Bulgarians, Assyrians, Jews and other non-Muslim population under Ottoman yoke were systematically killed, tortured, their cultural heritage destroyed andexpelled from their native lands.

Colleagues, now on the agenda,

I would like to share with you some concerns of the Armenian Delegation on a document that has to be prepared in the framework of the Assembly on Nagorno Karabakh.

Armenian Delegation has always been advocating the principle of open dialogue and sincere discussion on the issue. Taking into account the delicate essence of the question, we attach great importance to confidence building and the atmosphere of mutual trust.

Today, we experience quite a tense and difficult situation in the region. The Nagorno-Karabakh peace process, led by the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, is endangered by the bellicose statements and military provocations of Azerbaijani authorities.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The very essence of trust is destructed. The Armenian position on the resolution of the conflict remains the same: it must be settled within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, through peaceful negotiations on the basis of the three principles of the Helsinki Final Act.

Colleagues,

We would like to draw your attention to the fact that since last summer and to date the number of border incidents and victims both on the Armenian and Azerbaijani sides has increased.

Only efforts of the Armenian side, aimed at the peaceful settlement of the conflict are not enough, since Azerbaijan is doing everything to escalate the situation in the conflict zone. And it is regrettable, that the existence of visionless documents encourages the Azerbaijani side to initiate new and more large-scale provocations and acts of sabotage.

In January the Co-Chairs of the Minsk Group issued a statement in Krakow on Azerbaijan’s destructive policy, in which they called upon Azerbaijan to live up to its commitments to the peaceful resolution of the conflict.

We call upon the Assembly to try to avoid a new spark of the conflict, which will seriously deteriorate the already unstable situation in our region.

Nevertheless, I truly believe, that the Council of Europe could play a great role in establishing cooperation with the elected authorities of Nagorno Karabakh in the field of human rights, in strengthening the rule of law and democratic institutions. This is the domain where the Council of Europe might really make a significant contribution, especially given the idea voiced by Ms Brasseur that the population of Nagorno Karabakh is part of the 820 million European family which, too, should be taken care in the Council of Europe.”