Stepanakert hails Scottish referendum

By Asbarez | Friday, 19 September 2014

 

People in Scotland rallying for a 'yes' vote for independence ahead of the referendum on Thursday


STEPANAKERT—The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh welcomed Scotland’s holding of a referendum for national independence.

 

Irrespective of the result, the referendum in Scotland is one more precedent confirming the right of peoples to decide their own fate and shows once again the obvious fact that self-determination is a norm in democratic societies, the Foreign Ministry said.

“In this regard, we consider it necessary to remind that it was the breach of this right to self-determination of the people of Artsakh by Azerbaijan that led to the mass violations of human rights and deportation of the Armenian population of Azerbaijan, followed by the full-scale aggression of Azerbaijan against Artsakh, as a result of which tens of thousands of people were killed, and hundreds of thousands became refugees.,” the Ministry’s statement says.

The international recognition of the will of the people of Artsakh will ensure the peaceful coexistence between two independent states, the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan, who emerged as a result of the collapse of the USSR and the war imposed by Azerbaijan, the Ministry says.

“Regardless of the outcome of the referendum, the free expression of the will of the Scottish people is an example of the realisation of the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples,” Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian said on Friday in replying to a question from Tert.am.

“In any country, where human rights and democratic freedoms are respected, the principle of self-determination of peoples cannot be disregarded,” Nalbandian emphasised.

More than 4 million eligible voters in Scotland went to the polls on September 18 to decide whether they want to remain a part of the United Kingdom or live as an independent nation. The referendum resulted in a vote against independence.


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