Author: Antranik Varosian

• No meeting is planned between the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia on the one year anniversary of the end of the 2020 war, says Russian official.
• Armenian Defense Minister Arshak Karapetyan has visited Nagorno-Karabakh.
• The prime minister’s spokesperson Mane Gevorgyan has resigned from her post.

Credits: Ruptly

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović

One year after the signing of the trilateral statement which ended the 2020 outbreak of hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, published a memorandum addressing the humanitarian and human rights consequences of the conflict and formulates eight recommendations for urgent human rights protection.

The Commissioner observes that access to the conflict-affected territories remains very limited for organizations providing humanitarian relief, as well as for human rights monitoring missions, and that obstacles are increasingly being placed on such missions. In her view, the issue of access to all areas affected by the conflict should be resolved as a matter of priority. The Commissioner calls on all the relevant authorities to come up with effective and flexible modalities of access enabling humanitarian and human rights actors to reach out to all those in need of urgent humanitarian assistance and human rights protection.

The 2020 outbreak of hostilities forced tens of thousands of people living in or near the conflict area into displacement, in addition to those who had been displaced by the conflict in the 1990s. “Anyone who has been displaced due to the conflict and is currently living in Armenia or Azerbaijan, including in areas affected by the conflict, should not be coerced either directly or indirectly to return to their former home”, said the Commissioner. She underlines that returns should be voluntary, and they should be carried out in conditions of safety and dignity. Accurate information should be provided to candidates for return in order to ensure that their choice is informed.

The Commissioner is also aware of the high level of contamination of the region by mines and explosive remnants of war and regrets that since the cessation of the hostilities, many persons, including civilians, have been killed or seriously injured due to the explosion of mines. She calls on the parties to co-operate and engage in the necessary exchange of data so as to facilitate the demining process. She also calls on the Armenian and Azerbaijani authorities to ratify the UN Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects (CCW) and its relevant protocols.

The Commissioner furthermore notes that the issue of captives, in particular of Armenian captives in Azerbaijan, remains a contentious one which exacerbates the already tense relations between the two countries. It is therefore crucial to ensure that all those still in captivity are provided with all protections guaranteed under international humanitarian and human rights law, and to facilitate their release and return.

“Many families still bear the brunt of the conflict, especially those who have lost a family member or whose relatives remain missing. It is therefore of paramount importance to place the families of missing persons, their legal and practical needs, and their right to know the truth at the centre of all actions concerning this issue”, said the Commissioner. In this regard, there is a need for more engagement with both sides to promote communication, establish a common database, and increase the chances of location and identification of mortal remains.

In addition, the Commissioner has received credible reports from NGOs and victims and their families about breaches of international humanitarian law as well as serious violations of human rights by the parties to the conflict. The Commissioner emphasizes that states have the legal obligation under international humanitarian law and the European Convention on Human Rights to hold those responsible for war crimes and serious human rights violations accountable.

Moreover, the Commissioner is particularly concerned by reports of indiscriminate shelling of populated areas resulting in deaths and serious injuries to civilians. She calls on Armenia and Azerbaijan to renounce the use of cluster munitions and to ensure effective investigations into violations of international humanitarian law, such as indiscriminate and/or disproportionate attacks, to identify and bring those responsible to account, and provide adequate and effective reparation to the victims.

Lastly, the Commissioner observes that the public debate in both countries has increasingly been marked by toxic, hostile, intolerant, and downright disrespectful communication. “The constant rhetoric of ‘aggression’ or the use of words such as ‘enemies’ to designate the other side only contributes to perpetuating animosities between the people living on the different sides of the dividing lines”, the Commissioner added. She recommends that both member states take resolute action to prevent and combat hate speech and support initiatives that promote peaceful co-existence and reconciliation.

Turkey attaches great importance to the establishment of new grounds for dialogue by Turkic Council members’ judicial organs at a time when threats that directly affect countries and their citizens such as terrorism, irregular migration and transnational crimes are increasing, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Monday.

Erdoğan sent a video message to the Turkic Council Chief Prosecutors Meeting in the Azerbaijani capital Baku.

Expressing that the Turkic Council, which was established 12 years ago, is one of the symbols of unity and solidarity, he emphasized that the global reputation of the council, which completed its institutionalization in 12 years, is gradually increasing.

Erdoğan stated that while the Turkic Council has increased its power with new participations, it has come out of a regional cooperation format and gained an international structure.

“The number of countries that have expressed their desire to cooperate with our council and to be an observer to our council is increasing day by day. While our countries defend the rights and interests of their citizens in multinational platforms, on the other hand, they strengthen their solidarity in the Turkic Council, the only organization that brings the Turkic world together,” he said.

“The events we have witnessed especially in recent years have shown that it is more than a necessity for us to develop new ways of cooperation in every field from trade to transportation, from defense to health. As a matter of fact, we recently held the Turkic Council Media Forum in Istanbul, hosted by our country, with the participation of competent people. We had the opportunity to identify our strengths and weaknesses in communication with the discussions held within the scope of the forum. We have taken critical decisions that will increase the effectiveness of our relevant units in the fight against disinformation campaigns targeting our countries,” the president added.

Expressing that they are justifiably proud of the Turkic Council’s Meeting of Chief Prosecutors in Baku, right after the Turkic Council Media Forum, Erdoğan said: “We attach great importance to the establishment of new dialogue grounds by our judicial organs at a time when threats such as terrorism, irregular migration and cross-border crimes that directly affect us and our citizens increase. This historic step, which will increase the sharing of experience and information between our Offices of Chief Public Prosecutor, and make communication and cooperation much more effective, we believe it will bring us closer to our goals.”

Istanbul hosted the Turkic Council Media Forum entitled “Deep-rooted Past, Strong Future,” organized by the Presidential Communications Directorate, on Oct. 22-24.

Erdoğan addressed the participants via video link at the opening session of the forum. Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Ersin Tatar, Turkey’s Communications Director Fahrettin Altun and Secretary-General of the Turkic Council Baghdad Amreyev each gave a speech at the forum’s opening.

More than 350 guests were expected to attend, including prominent media representatives, academics, senior officials from public institutions and organizations, social media influencers and university students from Turkic Council members Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Hungary, which has observer status, as well as Turkmenistan and Turkish Cyprus.

Cooperation opportunities in the media, TV series and film sectors in the Turkic world, as well as social media and the joint struggle against disinformation, were among the topics that were discussed during the forum.

Commenting on the forum, Altun said: “We wish to build the future together with the members of the Turkic Council as part of a common mind and vision. Under the leadership of the Turkish president and the leaders of other member states, we aim to move relations much further in all areas through effective cooperation and strong solidarity.”

Altun underlined the important role of the media in developing cooperation among the Turkic countries and the importance of studies that will strengthen the consciousness of unity among the youth of the Turkic world.

The Turkic Council Meeting of Chief Prosecutors aims to develop and strengthen the cooperation between the public prosecutors of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. The meeting will last until Wednesday.

After the opening meeting, the founding document of the Meeting of Chief Prosecutors within the Turkic Council was signed. The Chief Public Prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals Bekir Şahin signed the document on behalf of Turkey.

In his statement to the press, Şahin noted that the Turkic Council has cooperated in many fields and that it would be a great shortcoming if there were no such cooperation between the countries’ judicial organs.

Stating that the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Offices constitute an important part of the judiciary, Şahin said: “By establishing this formation, we pave the way for the Turkic Council to become stronger. Now the judicial branch has been formed. From now on, the Turkic Council will become one of the leading institutions in the world by developing cooperation in other fields.”

Also mentioning the attacks carried out by Armenia on Azerbaijani civilian settlements during the Karabakh war, Şahin said: “Azerbaijan also filed a lawsuit with the World Court on this issue. I believe that Azerbaijan will win. As Turkey, we will continue to provide all kinds of support and assistance to Azerbaijan in this regard.”

Azerbaijan recently applied to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), also known as World Court, to order neighboring Armenia to hand over maps showing the location of landmines in the Karabakh territories liberated by Azerbaijani forces from the nearly three-decade Armenian occupation last year, while the judges are also considering tit-for-tat claims that the other side violated an antidiscrimination treaty.

This time last year, Azerbaijani troops drove Armenian forces out of swathes of territory they had occupied since the 1990s, in and around the Nagorno-Karabakh region, before Russia brokered a cease-fire.

Azerbaijan accused rival Armenia at the United Nations’ top court of laying landmines as part of a campaign of “ethnic cleansing” despite the end of last year’s war.