Lawyer: A country that emerges victorious in the military arena may  still encounter defeat in the International Court

ArmInfo. Today, the international community is critical of Azerbaijan's actions  in  Artsakh. Ara Ghazaryan, an international law specialist and lawyer,  made this statement on November 14 during a press conference on "The  Impact of Azerbaijani Aggression on Human Rights and Environmental  Protection." At the same time, he noted that, in contrast, the  Azerbaijani authorities continue to demand the return of their  citizens to Armenia.

Ghazaryan pointed out that the Azerbaijani authorities are thus  trying to conceal their own crimes in Artsakh. He emphasized that  Azerbaijan's crimes could come to light during international trials,  and to avoid this, official Baku is taking preventive measures, such  as demanding Armenia to withdraw its claims.  When asked about the  appropriate legal terminology to describe Azerbaijan's actions, the  lawyer noted that the legal classification varies depending on the  goal. In this regard, he explained that Azerbaijan consistently  attempts to portray ethnic cleansing as a consequence of the war in  its legal proceedings.  "Two countries are at war, and therefore,  cities and villages can be destroyed," Ghazaryan explained referring  to Azerbaijan's attempts to conceal its own crimes.

At the same time, according to the lawyer, international courts are  not political platforms where the party with more resources wins. He  is convinced that the priority is still given to the rule of law  there.  "Azerbaijan is afraid of trials because the truth becomes  evident in them. We have seen how Armenia, one could say, has already  prevailed in two cases, or rather, in their rejection," Ghazaryan  explained.  This is why, according to him, Azerbaijan is trying to  appeal to the narrative of the so-called right of Azerbaijanis to  return to Armenia. "When Armenia tries to promote the right of return  to Artsakh, Azerbaijan balances this issue by referring to the  1992-1994 war, however, as confirmed by the court decision of  November 12, we must start studying the facts from 1996," the  international law specialist continued. At the same time, as  Ghazaryan notes, this is not the first case of a protracted process  in international courts: there are cases in the European Court of  Human Rights for which decisions have not yet been made. He noted  that Azerbaijan understands that the more time passes, the heavier  their burden will be, because they cannot deny the right of the  Artsakh people to return. 

"In  practice they do not do this. Instead, they present various  counterarguments, such as the right of Azerbaijanis to return to  Armenia," the expert explained. The lawyer further explained that the  right to return is connected to the concept of the homeland, which in  turn is tied to the nation and other concepts like home, church,  history, and so on. "Therefore, they do not say that they left their  homes in Armenia, but assert that they left their homeland there. It  is not without reason that Aliyev always talks about "Western  Azerbaijan," the expert emphasized. 

However, as Ghazaryan explained, a country that emerges victorious in  the military arena may still encounter defeat in the International  Court. "We saw how numerous myths of Azerbaijan were dispelled, and  Armenia received a certain advantage, including in the context of the  right to return. The right to return encompasses not only going back  to one's home, but also returning to one's homeland. The homeland has  nothing to do with politics. The homeland includes dozens of  components of the European Convention on Human Rights, including the  component of exercising the right to return. It remains to realize  this right through our efforts," the expert concluded.  Recall that  due to Azerbaijan's full-scale military aggression of on September  19, 2023 against Nagorno- Karabakh, which followed a nine-month  blockade, about 109 thousand citizens of Artsakh were forcibly  displaced to Armenia. In total, since the 44-day Artsakh war in 2020,  150,000 Artsakh residents have been left homeless.