This issue of illegal armament of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh was discussed today during the debate at the 17th meeting of the Committee of UN General Assembly about the peace, security and disarmament. Azerbaijan has raised the issue of illegal armament of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh at the Sixty-fourth UN General Assembly.

"Armenia had built up its military presence, with data showing a growing number of uncontrolled arms, including 316 tanks, 324 armoured vehicles and 322 artillery systems in the occupied territories, exceeding its maximum levels", deputy chairman of the committee, the first secretary of Azerbaijani permanent office in UN, Ogtay Ismayilzada, said.

"Armenia's aggression had led to the occupation of one-fifth of Azerbaijan's territory, triggering the internal displacement of 1 million people, and of war crimes and genocide. Armenia had used the occupied territories to hide great numbers of unaccounted and uncontrolled treaty-limited equipment from the "CFE" community, endangering the security of Azerbaijan and the stable development of the whole region," he said.

Other representatives noticed that peace and security could only be achieved with strong regional action and strict compliance with existing arms agreements; otherwise the present arms races would erect stumbling blocks along the road to stability around the world.

Ismayilzada regretted that unfortunately, unlawful use of force still plagued certain States, and civilian populations were suffering around the world, owing to the failure of individual States to fulfill their most basic responsibilities. "Armenia had blamed Azerbaijan for increasing its military budget and for violations of arms limitation norms, but it had failed to mention Azerbaijan's defense spending, conformed to overall budget increases," he said.

"Azerbaijan spent 3.26 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on the army, compared with Armenia's 3.86 per cent. Despite being in a state of war, Azerbaijan was continuing to fulfill commitments under the CFE Treaty, reducing and destroying more than 150 treaty-limited armaments and equipment over the last five years, in line with the Tashkent Agreement. Azerbaijan aimed to liberate all occupied territories, return internally displaced persons to their homes and establish a durable peace and stability in the Nagorno-Karabakh region," he said.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan lost all of Nagorno-Karabakh except for Shusha and Khojali in December 1991. In 1992-93, Armenian armed forces occupied Shusha, Khojali and 7 districts surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations.