Azerbaijan pledges peaceful co-existence in Upper Karabakh

Azerbaijan is resolute to re-integrate its citizens of Armenian origin living in the Nagorno-Karabakh region into the country's political, social, and economic sphere, said Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov on Thursday.

Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister made the remarks at the 27th Meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Bayramov, during the video conference, talked about the Nagorno-Karabakh operation that liberated occupied territories, and the ceasefire deal signed between Azerbaijan and Armenia under the mediation of Russia.

He said the trilateral statement signed on Nov. 10 had created the ground for putting an end to the 30-year-old armed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and added that the deal includes an important article on the return of Azerbaijani migrants to their homes under the supervision of the UNHCR.

Armenia had forced over 1 million Azerbaijanis to leave their homes after 1980.

Bayramov thanked Turkey and Russia for their efforts towards making this agreement a reality.

"These neighboring states play an important role as guarantors of the above-mentioned agreement, implementation of which will ensure long-overdue peace and stability in the South Caucasus region," he stressed.

PEACEFUL CO-EXISTENCE

Bayramov underlined that after the return of the Aghdam, Kalbajar and Lachin districts to Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani and Armenian residents of these areas will have equal rights, irrespective of their ethnic background.

"Azerbaijan is resolute to re-integrate its citizens of Armenian origin residing in the territories of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan into its political, social, economic space, guaranteeing the same rights and freedoms with all the citizens of Azerbaijan regardless of their ethnic, religious affiliation on an equal and non-discriminatory basis. The Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan provides a solid legal framework in this regard," he said.

"Peaceful co-existence of Azerbaijani and Armenian residents of the conflict-affected territories based on respect to each other's security, ethnic and religious identity within the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan must and shall be finally ensured," he added.

Bayramov also noted that with the agreement, all economic and transport links in the region will be opened and a Turkish-Russian joint monitoring center will be established to monitor the implementation of the agreements.