Washington, DC – Today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse put out the following statement on the ongoing crisis in the Nagorno-Karabakh region between Armenia and Azerbaijan:
“The recent violence endangering the lives of Armenian people in Nagorno-Karabakh is a disturbing reminder of the fighting these two sides agreed to end over two decades ago. Over the years, thousands of people have been displaced by the strife in this area. More would surely follow if the escalating violence that we’ve seen over the last two years – and especially in the last two weeks – is allowed to continue. Nobody is allowed to unilaterally revise the status quo through violence. Inflammatory rhetoric from Azerbaijan’s leaders in recent months only serves to undermine the chances for a permanent, negotiated settlement to the conflict, and indications of a pre-planned offensive by Azerbaijani military forces are also troubling. I hope that all parties involved commit themselves to resolving this conflict peacefully, and my thoughts are with those who continue to suffer from violence and insecurity.”
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