Ensuring free and safe access through the Lachin Corridor

Recommendation 2256 (2023)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly debate on 22 June 2023 (18th sitting) (see Doc. 15796, report of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons, rapporteur: Mr Paul Gavan). Text adopted by the Assembly on 22 June 2023 (18th sitting).

1. Referring to Resolution 2508 (2023) “Ensuring free and safe access through the Lachin Corridor” and recognising the Committee of Ministers’ role as the guarantor of the protection of human rights within the member States of the Council of Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly draws the Committee of Ministers’ attention to the humanitarian and human rights crisis affecting the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh, following Azerbaijan’s unilateral operations at the Lachin Corridor in contradiction with the ceasefire agreement, referred to as the “trilateral statement”, signed on 9 November 2020 by President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin.

2. Regretting that the Assembly rapporteur was not invited to Azerbaijan and was thus unable to gather first-hand information on the spot, the Assembly requests that a Council of Europe fact-finding mission be organised to Azerbaijan as early as possible, with the aim of assessing the situation in which Armenians, who have been affected by the absence of free and safe access through the Lachin Corridor since 12 December 2022, live.

3. Acknowledging the feelings of insecurity and threat experienced by the Armenian population living in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Assembly believes that the Council of Europe may play an important role in fostering trust and dialogue between its two member States, notably through confidence-building measures. It therefore encourages the Committee of Ministers to develop new activities within the existing action plans or through a sui generis co-operation instrument, which would aim, inter alia, to tackle hate speech, in particular unacceptable language and rhetoric employed by members of the Government of Azerbaijan in relation to members of the Armenian population, and to contribute to building a climate of tolerance and mutual respect.