Written declaration No. 478 | Doc. 12590 | 14 April 2011

The construction of an airport in the occupied Azerbaijani territories by Armenia

Signatories: Ms Ganira PASHAYEVA, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Mr Aydin ABBASOV, Azerbaijan, SOC ; Mr Ruhi AÇIKGÖZ, Turkey, EDG ; Mr Lokman AYVA, Turkey, EPP/CD ; Mr Erol Aslan CEBECİ, Turkey, EPP/CD ; Mr Paata DAVITAIA, Georgia, EDG ; Ms Sevinj FATALIYEVA, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Ms Sahiba GAFAROVA, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Mr Sabir HAJIYEV, Azerbaijan, SOC ; Mr Mike HANCOCK, United Kingdom, ALDE ; Mr Rafael HUSEYNOV, Azerbaijan, ALDE ; Ms Birgen KELEŞ, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Ertuğrul KUMCUOĞLU, Turkey, EDG ; Ms Nursuna MEMECAN, Turkey, ALDE ; Mr Krasimir MINCHEV, Bulgaria, EPP/CD ; Mr Patrick MORIAU, Belgium, SOC ; Mr Yüksel ÖZDEN, Turkey, EDG ; Mr Rovshan RZAYEV, Azerbaijan, EPP/CD ; Mr Samad SEYIDOV, Azerbaijan, EDG ; Mr Elkhan SULEYMANOV, Azerbaijan, EPP/CD ; Mr Mehmet TEKELİOĞLU, Turkey, EPP/CD ; Mr Tuğrul TÜRKEŞ, Turkey, EDG ; Mr Mustafa ÜNAL, Turkey, EPP/CD

This written declaration commits only those who have signed it.

Armenia is leading the construction of an airport in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region, thus ignoring the norms of international law. Besides the norms of international law, the indicated activities fully contradict 4 UN Security Council Resolutions on the liberation of the occupied Azerbaijani territories, the commitments undertaken by Armenia before the Council of Europe and in Parliamentary Assembly Resolution 1416 (2005). This action also hardly damages the negotiation process on peaceful settlement of the conflict of Nagorno-Karabakh dealt by OSCE Minsk Group, thus much more straining the tense situation in the region. The statement by the Armenian president Serj Sarkisyan to be the first passenger to land on the airport under construction also contradicts international law, the spirit of the commitments undertaken by Armenia before the Council of Europe and in Assembly Resolution 1416 (2005).

Considering all this, we resolutely condemn the construction by Armenia of an airport in the occupied Azerbaijani territories. We call on and demand Erevan’s authorities to stop the construction of the airport, to refrain from such activities and statements, to implement its obligations on conflict-resolution undertaken before the Council of Europe including Assembly Resolution 1416 (2005), to withdraw from the occupied Azerbaijani territories, thus enabling 1 million refugees and IDP-s to return to their homeland.