Wed 30 September 2020:
The UN Security Council threw its weight Tuesday behind Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ call to end fighting in the Upper Karabakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh region.
The UN’s most powerful body strongly condemned the use of force and backed Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ earlier call to immediately stop fighting, deescalate tensions and return to meaningful negotiations without delay.
The council’s members “expressed concern over reports of large-scale military actions along the Line of Contact in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone,” in a statement.
“They strongly condemn the use of force and regret the loss of life and the toll on the civilian population,” they added. “Security Council members expressed their full support for the central role of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs and urge the sides to work closely with them for an urgent resumption of dialogue without preconditions.”
Germany’s deputy UN Ambassador Gunter Sautter called on neighboring states “to play a more constructive role in this regard and avoid everything that could further raise tensions,” according to the text of his remarks to the council which were released.
Estonia’s UN ambassador Sven Jürgenson urged both sides in his remarks, which were also released, to respond to Secretary-General Guterres’ call on March 23, which he reiterated to world leaders last week, for a global cease-fire to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.
Border clashes in Upper-Karabakh broke out early Sunday.
Relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, two former Soviet nations, have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military occupied the region, which is an internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.
Four UN Security Council and two UN General Assembly resolutions demand the withdrawal of occupying forces.
The OSCE Minsk Group – co-chaired by France, Russia and the US – was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire, however, was agreed upon in 1994.
France, Russia and NATO, among others, have called for an immediate halt to clashes in the occupied region.
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