On 11 October Artsakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan was present at the opening of the “Cooperation for Justice and Peace” conference of Artsakh friends under way in Stepanakert.
“Today’s event is distinguished both by its content and the participant list. This is the pioneering pro-Artsakh forum, which has brought together, under the same roof, political, public, cultural figures, human rights advocates, scientists, analysts and journalists from different countries who support Artsakh. Here are members of the friendship groups and circles with Artsakh, representatives of administrative units and political forces having recognized the independence of the Artsakh Republic or have been cooperating with us,” the Presidnet said in his opening remarks.
“Remaining true to the democratic principles and humanitarian values, you have spared no effort supporting Artsakh for years, raising awareness about and rendering objective information on our country on diverse international platforms, carrying out activities towards the development of bilateral relations and the implementation of multifaceted programs in Artsakh,” he added.
The Presidnet expressed gratitude for their painstaking, highly appreciating their pursuit.
In this context, it is crucial to present once again our vision of the Artsakh Republic state-building process and our foreign policy imperatives, which is a unique roadmap for your work as well.
Referring Artsakh’s vision of state-building process and foreign policy imperatives, President Sahakyan said “building an independent, sovereign and strong state has always been the backbone of our state-building, our trinity with Armenia and the Diaspora, our commitment to democratic values and principles being among its pillars.”
“The full-fledged security of Artsakh in all the dimensions is a must for us. Even the slightest decline in our security will tempt our opponents to launch a new aggression which itself is pregnant with unpredictable consequences. For this very reason security issues are top priority in the negotiation process too,” he stated.
He reaffirmed the commitment to peaceful settlement of relations with Azerbaijan around the negotiation table under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group. He reaffirmed that it is impossible to achieve real progress without restoring the full-fledged negotiation format with the direct participation of Artsakh. Obviously, the fate of Artsakh cannot be decided without its participation and there is no return to the past, both with respect to status and borders.
“The principles of balanced and multi-vectored approach remain at the root of the Artsakh Republic foreign policy,” President Sahakyan noted.
“Maintaining equally good-neighborly relations with Europe, the USA, Russia as well as regional states is a foreign strategy imperative for us. This stance is derivative from both the specificity of our region and the existence of the Armenian Diaspora,” he stressed.
Bako Sahakyan added that official Stepanakert will continue placing special emphasis on forging and enhancing relations with different countries and states and their administrative units.