14. The Assembly strongly believes that this tragic exodus of almost a whole population from its ancestralhomeland must not be accepted as the new reality: it is not too late for Azerbaijan to redress the situation andprove its goodwill. As a member State of the Council of Europe, Azerbaijan can and should demonstrate, atthis difficult time, its willingness and clear intention to calm fears and uphold its obligations under the humanrights instruments to which it is a party, and its commitment to the core values of our Organisation.

15. Each man, woman, elderly person or child who has left their home because of their belief that theirpersonal and collective security as Armenians would be in peril after the recent events in the region will havetheir own story to tell. Beyond these individual human stories, the security and stability of the entire SouthCaucasus region are at stake and must be preserved, and for this reason, the Assembly calls on Azerbaijan todo everything within its power to demonstrate its willingness to live in peace with its neighbour, Armenia. TheAssembly expects both Armenia and Azerbaijan to fully respect each other’s territorial integrity andsovereignty, as well as the inviolability of their respective borders. The Assembly calls for greater regional co-operation and for the opening of regional connectivity links based on full respect of countries' sovereignty,territorial integrity and jurisdiction, as well as on the principles of equality and reciprocity. This is particularlyimportant in the context of a possible transport link with Nakhchivan which cannot be established against thewill of Armenia or to the detriment of its freely determined national interest. In this context, the Assemblysupports all efforts directed towards the normalisation of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, based onmutual recognition of sovereignty, inviolability of borders and territorial integrity, on the basis of the 1991Almaty Declaration.

16. It is now incumbent upon Azerbaijan to create the climate of trust and material conditions for theArmenians of this region to be able to return to their homeland. It should indeed take active steps toencourage and reassure them to do so. This involves gaining their confidence in the willingness of Azerbaijanto guarantee and uphold the protection of their lives and rights, including the right to liberty and security, theright to education in their own language, freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and association, theprohibition of discrimination, the protection of their religious and cultural rights and their right to property, aswell as the possibility to maintain transborder relations with Armenia and their relatives living there.

17. The Assembly believes that this will require genuine, immediate and public investment on the part ofAzerbaijan in clear and unequivocal statements to this end, accompanied by discussions with the relevantparties on the concrete measures which will be put in place to protect the security, language, religious, culturaland other minority rights of Armenians from this region. Any expressions of intolerance or revenge for pastevents are particularly unwelcome in this period, and the Assembly calls upon Azerbaijan to pay particularattention to this aspect. Indeed, given previous such statements there is a clear onus upon the politicalleadership at the highest level to express its firm rejection of any expressions of hate or revenge. TheAssembly calls on Azerbaijan to extend its protection to the Armenian cultural heritage of the region.

18. Undoubtedly, a process of transitional justice to address the crimes which were perpetrated in the1990s and during the 2020 war will be indispensable to ensure durable and sustainable peace in the regionand between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Assembly considers that such a process, while complex, mayprove more fruitful in restoring confidence than aggressive actions, rhetoric or the instigation of criminalproceedings against the former leaders of Nagorno-Karabakh. The Assembly calls on Azerbaijan to release alldetained representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh as well as all Armenian prisoners of war currently held inAzerbaijan.

19. The Assembly welcomes the deployment by the United Nations of a mission to Nagorno-Karabakh forthe first time in more than 30 years, the aim of which is to assess humanitarian needs in the region. Itexpresses its hope that this visit will be swiftly followed by an agreement on the part of the Azerbaijaniauthorities to organise high-level and fact-finding visits from other international bodies, in particular relevantinstitutions and bodies of the Council of Europe.

20. In this respect, the Assembly believes that a visit of the Commissioner for Human Rights in the verynear future and the visit later this year of the Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for theProtection of National Minorities in the context of its regular monitoring cycle would be a clear sign ofAzerbaijan’s willingness to engage with the Organisation on the measures now needed. The facilitation ofsuch visits will allow the Organisation to gain the best overview of the situation, conduct a more effectivedialogue with the authorities of Azerbaijan and to lend its expertise and support in redressing the situation,including as regards the protection and reassurance of the remaining Armenian population, the safeguardingof the property and other assets of those who have sought refuge abroad in the current situation, and thenecessary measures to encourage the return of this population to its homeland.

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