Artsakh Foreign Ministry

The Artsakh Foreign Ministry on Wednesday, citing Ankara’s destructive role in the wake of Azerbaijan’s attacks on Artsakh, called for Turkey’s expulsion from the OSCE Minsk Group, which is tasked with negotiating a settlement to the Karabakh conflict.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, official Stepanakert said that Turkey’s actions “make it impossible to see it as a member of the OSCE Minsk Group. Turkey should not be involved in any activities related to the implementation of the OSCE-led mediation mission aimed at resolving the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict, and should be excluded from the OSCE Minsk Group, for its presence in this international mediation structure equals to encouraging destructive and criminal activities aimed at unleashing a war against the Republic of Artsakh.”

“Turkey has long and actively been trying to use the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict to advance its destructive foreign policy agenda in the South Caucasus by not only publicly expressing unconditional solidarity with Azerbaijan, but also providing direct support to Azerbaijan, including military,” the Foreign Ministry of Artsakh said in a statement.

“If in the past Turkey played the role of a ‘shadow puppeteer’ directing the actions of Azerbaijan, now Ankara is directly involved in the international violations of the Azerbaijani authorities against the people of Artsakh,” said the Artsakh foreign ministry.

In the statement, Stepanakert said that Ankara was encouraging the “criminal actions of Baku,” by providing military and political support to Azerbaijan, including the free flow of weapons, “specifically, unmanned aerial vehicles and multiple launch rocket systems, sending military specialists and recruiting mercenaries from the Middle East to use them in the war against the Republic of Artsakh. A vivid example of Turkey’s aggressive behavior is the destruction of an Armenian aircraft by a Turkish F-16 fighter jet in the airspace of the Republic of Armenia.”

“The level of Turkey’s dangerous role in the region is increasing amid its leadership’s growing expansionist ambitions that harken back to the empire that, during its last days, carried out the first genocide of the 20th century—the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923,” said the Artsakh foreign ministry.

The current Turkish authorities inherited from the Ottoman Empire not only its policies, but also its criminal methods and the approaches to their implementation, said Stepanakert.

“It is worth noting that the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict started in 1918 precisely as a result of the military intervention of Turkish troops in the South Caucasus. In continuation of the Armenian Genocide, Turkish troops invaded Artsakh in 1918 and massacred the Armenian population of Shushi. However, all their attempts to subjugate Artsakh to the short-lived independent Azerbaijan resulted in complete failure. A little over a hundred years later, Turkey is trying to turn history back,” said the Artsakh foreign ministry.

“Turkey’s significant role in the crimes committed by Azerbaijan against the people of Artsakh is well-documented and beyond any doubt. Ankara is responsible not only for using Azerbaijani authorities to commit crimes, but also for controlling and directing the criminal acts both in their conception and execution. Turkey’s actions in the context of the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict are more than merely supporting and inciting Azerbaijan to commit new crimes. This position by Turkish leaders represents an integral part of their criminal behavior and proves the existence of an agreement between Turkey and Azerbaijan on achieving a common goal through concerted actions, as well as a joint control over the implementation of their aggressive plans. The international community should fully understand that Turkey, along with Azerbaijan, bears the responsibility for undermining regional peace and security, and thus should be held equally accountable for consistent violations of international law and the UN Charter,” warned Stepanakert.

“We emphasize yet again that in the situation whereby Azerbaijan, led by Turkey, ignores the calls by the international community for the immediate end to hostilities, and consistently refuses to resolve the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict exclusively through peaceful means, the international recognition of the Republic of Artsakh will become international community’s collective contribution to the restoration of regional peace and security and create conditions for resolving all remaining issues through negotiations,” said the Artsakh foreign ministry, arguing that the recognition of the Artsakh people’s right to self-determination will help to deter the “genocidal policy” of Turkey and Azerbaijan against Artsakh.

We believe that the international recognition of the Republic of Artsakh fully complies with the political and humanitarian obligations of the civilized world, especially of the countries that have recognized and condemned the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923,” said Stepanakert.