Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 24
By Orkhan Quluzade – Trend:
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has supported the implementation of the UN Security Council resolutions on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and welcomed all diplomatic efforts and initiatives, including of the OSCE, for the conflict’s settlement, OIC Secretary General Yusuf bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen told Trend.
“The OIC is also in close contact with regional and international stakeholders, and has recently established a Contact Group to deal more practically and constructively with the issue and hopefully come up with new ways for a peaceful settlement of the conflict,” he said.
“In accordance with the OIC basic documents like its Charter, OIC-2025: Program of Action and related resolutions and decisions, all OIC member states shall settle their disputes through peaceful means and refrain from the use or threat of use of force in their relations. The same peaceful approach has also been reiterated for resolving the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” said the OIC secretary general.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has been on the OIC agenda since 1992, according to him.
“The OIC has strongly condemned the Armenian aggression against the Republic of Azerbaijan and maintained the position that the Armenian forces should be withdrawn from all occupied Azerbaijani territories immediately, unconditionally and completely,” Yusuf bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen said.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
