PACE has adopted a written statement strongly condemning the illegal municipal elections held in Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenian-occupied region of Azerbaijan.
The statement developed by member of the Azerbaijani delegation to PACE Ganira Pashayeva were signed by MPs from different countries.
The document was adopted as a written statement by PACE and was announced by the chairman of the organization Mevlud Chavushoglu.
Armenia continues to hold 20 percent of globally recognized territory of Azerbaijan, a PACE member, under occupation, the statement says.
"PACE condemned this occupation in the resolution No. 1416 urging Armenia to withdraw from the occupied Azerbaijani lands.
Despite this, Armenia, failing to implement PACE and UN resolutions, on 18 September, 2011 once again deliberately held illegal municipal elections in the unrecognized "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic", illegally established in the territories of Azerbaijan.
These illegal elections, contrary to legal norms and resolutions adopted by international organizations, dealt a serious blow to complicated negotiating process between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Armenia`s steps exacerbate already tense situation in the region," the statement says.
The PACE declaration also emphasizes that the so-called "elections" held by Armenia are sharply condemned by most international organizations.
"With this in mind, the Assembly strongly condemns these illegal elections and calls on Armenia to stop destructive steps to take, as besides being contrary to international law and relevant resolutions of international organizations, they also have a negative impact and jeopardize the negotiating process on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and aggravate the situation in the region. The Assembly urges the Armenian authorities to respect international law and take a constructive position in the conflict resolution process," it says in a statement.

AzerTAc