On September 29, at a side event of the UN Human Rights Council’s 60th session in Geneva, dedicated to the right of return of the people of Artsakh, Artak Beglaryan, head of the Artsakh Union, criticized the latest U.S.-brokered peace documents.
“The Washington document contains nothing about the main victims of the conflict,” Beglaryan said, according to Panorama.am .
The discussion, organized by Christian Solidarity International, featured Swiss National Council members Erich Fontobel and Nicolas Walder, as well as prominent international lawyer Paul Williams. Swiss parliamentarians stressed that without the return of Artsakh Armenians, just and lasting peace is impossible. Williams highlighted the Swiss peace initiative and the need to clearly define return conditions.
Beglaryan underscored the readiness of forcibly displaced Artsakh citizens to return to their ancestral homes, stressing that international support is decisive. He noted that the right of return is fully grounded in international law, and only political will is needed to implement it.
Speaking on behalf of the displaced population, Beglaryan described the 2020 war, the 2023 blockade, and the military assault that forced nearly 120,000 Armenians to flee within a week. He pointed to assessments by genocide scholars, international jurists, and institutions like the European Parliament and Freedom House, which classified the events as ethnic cleansing or even genocide.
He outlined specific conditions for meaningful and lasting return, including:
- international security guarantees with on-site presence,
- exclusion of Azerbaijani genocidal control,
- joint international–local administration,
- secure land and air links with Armenia,
- demilitarization of adjacent Azerbaijani areas,
- an end to state-promoted Armenophobia,
- justice and reconciliation mechanisms.
Before these are ensured, urgent steps must include international monitoring of cultural heritage and property rights, protection of displaced Armenians’ identity in Armenia, the release of Armenian hostages in Azerbaijan, sanctions against Baku, and an inclusive international mechanism with legitimate Artsakh representatives involved.
Beglaryan concluded: “We demand to return to our homes—not as scattered individuals under threat, but as a community living safely, with dignity and stability. Real peace must be inclusive and just.”
In September 2023, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale attack on Artsakh. Within days, Artsakh’s authorities agreed to disarmament and dissolution under Baku’s terms. Over 100,000 Armenians were forcibly displaced to Armenia, leaving only a few behind. On January 1, 2024, the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic formally ceased to exist, though its people continue to demand international guarantees for their right of return.
