Internal and foreign policy preconditions for the declaration

of the Republic of Mountainous Karabakh on September 2, 1991

 

Summary

 

Keywords Republic of Mountainous Karabakh, Artsakh, unification, independence, Declaration, referendum, pogrom, operation “Ring.”

 

The universally recognized right of nations for self-determination is equipollent to the thesis of the territorial integrity and has two main shapes. They are the unification of the two parts of the same nation and separation of the compact ethnic groups and their foundation of the independent States. The epoch-making decision of the Council at the Mountainous Karabakh Autonomous Region, dated February 20, 1988, on the unification with the Armenian SSR, had arisen essentially new, nationwide movement, which confirmed its activity by the collaboration with the legislative authorities. The legal, constitutional struggle for the reintegration brought about astonishment, widespread sympathy and active support of the whole world. In 1988-1991 the European parliament had adopted 4, and the US Congress – 2 resolutions of solidarity.

The executives of the Azerbaijan SSR had applied pogroms, attacks, ethnic purges, blockade and wiping villages out; as far as they availed themselves of the indulgence, and then of the immediate co-operation with the all-Union authorities. The latter one had relinquished its sovereign right and obligations in regard to the Armenian dwellers of Azerbaijan; and thus it blocked peaceful, political settlement of the issue. Following escalation of violence, to begin with the pogrom in Baku on January 13-20, 1990, and the “Ring” military operation, waged against 26 villages of Artsakh and //-150  Shahumian district on April 30 – May 16, 1991, created a menace of the large-scale war and demanded the greater freedom for Artsakh. Therefore, the Declaration of proclamation of the Republic of Mountainous Karabakh had been adopted in Stepanakert on September 2, 1991; 82,8 per cent of its adult population came for the referendum and 99,89 per cent of them had supported independence on December 10. Afterwards, the Declaration of the State independence of the RMK had been adopted on January 6, 1992. //-151