Yugeni Krishtalev. Exclusively to VK
The recent visit of co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group to the region of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict caused discussions on possibilities and legitimacy of opening an airport in Nagorno-Karabakh for carrying out regular flight connection.
Last week on July 13 co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group from Russia, the US, and France expressed their concern about the planned opening of an airport in Nagorno-Karabakh and further growth of tension. The mediators also stated that flights departed and arrived to the airport couldn’t be used in favor of changing Karabakh’s status within the international law. The sides convinced the diplomats that they would reject any threats to attack civil aircrafts and avoid polarization of the issue.
So does the Minsk Group accept flights above Karabakh or does it make the sides to deal with the difficult issue by their own? It seems the diplomats didn’t take responsibility for a complete verdict.
Major world and European organizations coordinating work of civic aviation and work of air companies and airports criticized possibility of opening an airport in Nagorno-Karabakh.
In spring the administration of the European Civic Aviation Conference held negotiations with the administration of civic aviation of Azerbaijan. President of ECAC, Catalin Radu, emphasized its devotion to the Chicago Convention on civic aviation and the UN resolutions, as well as to struggle against efforts to ruin security of flights in the region.
Official Baku reminded its position which says that intention by the Armenian side to organize civic flights to occupied Nagorno-Karabakh contradicted international law. “Nagorno-Karabakh is a recognized by the international society part of Azerbaijan. But due to its occupation by Armenia, Azerbaijan has no opportunity to control the situation in the region and cannot guarantee safety of such flights,” press secretary of the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, Elman Abdullayev, said, Interfax-Azerbaijan reported. According to him, Azerbaijan relying on norms of the international law has always stated on unacceptability of flights above occupied territories of Azerbaijan because such an illegal step by Armenia can cause various provocations and incidents.
The head of the Administration of Civic Aviation of Azerbaijan, Arif Mamedov, stated that flights through the territory of Azerbaijan, according to international law, should take place only after an official agreement of Baku. Mamedov believes that the self-declared authorities of Nagorno-Karabakh cannot response for safety of such flights. “If we fly anywhere, we should guarantee safety for passengers. And who (in this case) can give such a guarantee? Will it be a man taking a self-declared position in a self-declared structure? I have heard him. He said they had one old airplane and they are satisfied with it. Thus this man is too far from international standards and security norms,” he emphasized.
The representative of the Department of Civic Aviation of Karabakh, Dmitry Adbashian, admitted that civic flights from the local airport had been postponed for several weeks. First flight had to took place in the mid of July, but the process was prolonged due to technical problems. “Not everything depends on us. The contract on technical service of the plane should be signed by two sides. That is why I cannot tell you the exact date or first flight,” Adbashian said.
It should be noted that there is no international air corridors for airplanes’ transit or flights within the closed zone above Nagorno-Karabakh. The air space was closed in the mid 1990s for safety reasons.
