President of the Republic of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan issued a statement on the 30th anniversary of the holding of referendum for independence in Artsakh.
‘We will continue the struggle for return of occupied territories’ – President of Artsakh
STEPANAKERT, DECEMBER 10, ARTSAKHPRESS: The full text of the statement is presented below:
“Dear compatriots,
30 years ago, on this very day of 1991, amidst hostilities and artillery shelling of peaceful settlements, our people organized a high-level Referendum on Independence marking the way for us to achieve our goals. With the Constitution of the Republic of Artsakh adopted in 2006 we reaffirmed our commitment to those values and ideas that formed the basis of our newly-independent statehood. Nevertheless, no matter how difficult and bloody this thirty-year-long march was, we managed to build and strengthen our statehood through national efforts, continuing to be dedicated to the values of the Artsakh national-liberation movement.
Despite the mediation efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group aimed at peaceful settlement of the Azerbaijani-Karabagh conflict, Azerbaijan, bypassing one of the three principles presented to the conflicting parties – the non-use of force, as well as other well-known principles of the international law, launched several military aggressions against the Republic of Artsakh and its civilian population among which the 2020 war has become the hardest challenge for our statehood and people. Regardless of the great human, territorial, material and moral-psychological consequences of this aggression, the Republic of Artsakh has been standing, the will and endurance of our people on the chosen path towards independence are unshakable. Among the bright indicators of this very fact are that within this short period of time the population has reached about 120,000 people, a high-level security environment has been ensured, the fully functioning state institutions have been carrying out numerous development projects restoring economic infrastructure. It is noteworthy that not only the state bodies fulfill their vital functions on the basis of the Constitution and legislation of the Republic of Artsakh, but it is also symbolic that on this very day local self-governing bodies’ elections are held in two large communities, which itself is a small but important manifestation of our state-building determination.
Touching upon the post-war situation and our plans for the future, I would like to highlight several key points:
- Security. Today we can state that despite the targeted provocations undertaken by Azerbaijan, due to the efforts of the Russian peacekeeping troops and the Defense Army, relative stability is maintained in Artsakh, which gives an opportunity to have a vision for the future and make active efforts in that direction. In this regard, I would like to express my deep gratitude to all the servicemen defending the Motherland, as well as the entire personnel of the Russian peacekeeping troops and personally to Russian President Vladimir Putin, due to whose immediate efforts the aspirations of the Turkish world have been thwarted and peace has been established in the region.
Given the extremely destructive and aggressive position of the Azerbaijani side, the uncertainty of the prospects and timing of the final and just settlement of the conflict, the Artsakh authorities and people believe that the presence of Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh should be guaranteed and indefinite as long as it is necessary. Within this context the needs and opinions of the people of Artsakh should be key factors, as we are the main beneficiaries of the peacekeeping mission.
Another pivotal direction to ensure the proper security is the consistent development of capabilities and fortifications of the Defense Army considering the existing challenges and peculiarities of the situation. In the past year, tangible work has been carried out and with time we will improve the efficiency of our security mechanisms.
- Foreign policy. We will continue the struggle for the unconditional recognition of the realization of our people's right to self-determination and the return of the occupied territories. We are in favor of a peaceful settlement of the conflict, where the international recognition of the independence of the Republic of Artsakh on the basis of the right to self-determination is our main and uncompromising goal, which will pave the way for the realization of the ultimate goal of the Artsakh movement. In this regard, we expect the unconditional and long-lasting support of the whole Armenian nation, without doubt and hesitation towards the path we have chosen.
- Demographics. One of the main guarantees of keeping Artsakh Armenian and settling the conflict in favor of nation is the existence of the Armenian people in their native soil. In this regard, the post-war demographics are quite promising, but serious efforts and resources are needed to achieve the desired results.
- Socio-economic development.
- Domestic policy.