French Envoy: There is a strong and legal basis for the right to return of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh

On 8 May 2024, RFE/RL Armenian Service Director Heghine Buniatyan sat for an exclusive interview with French Ambassador to Armenia Olivier Decottignies. This question deals with the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.

RFE/RL: And there is also another question that France was very vocal about. It’s about the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. And I remember that last October when there was a hearing in the French Senate, your former foreign minister said that this is a crime that can’t go unanswered, and France is going to initiate a new resolution in the United Nations Permanent Council to create conditions for [people’s] returns, including international peacekeepers and ensuring their rights. So six months have passed. Can you update what has been done so far?

Ambassador Decottignies: There’s one positive development. It is that we have a legal basis for discussion, not only in the United Nations Security Council but basically in any international fora, that is the order [Order of 17 November 2023], the decision of the International Court of Justice, that recognizes the right to return for the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh. So, this is a strong and legal basis, a very detailed decision. And this decision is obligatory. It’s not an opinion of the court. It is obligatory for all members of the International Court of Justice, including Azerbaijan. When it comes to the Security Council proper, France has three times [called] the Security Council [on] the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, both during the blockade and after the assault by Azerbaijan. In the Security Council, one country, one permanent member of the Security Council, like France, can block a text, but one country cannot impose a text.

RFE/RL: Can you disclose what country was blocking it?

Ambassador Decottignies: There wasn’t a majority to move forward to vote. And there’s a country which has…

RFE/RL: Just one?

Ambassador Decottignies: No, no, no, there wasn’t a majority, there wasn’t a majority. And among the countries that have a veto right, you know, not all of them share our view of the situation.

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