Davit Babayan, the press secretary of the President of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic said that the referendum that took place in Crimea on March 16, was first and foremost the realization of a nation’s right to self-determination. When asked by CivilNet if Nagorno-Karabakh will recognize the Crimean referendum, Babayan said, “We have also realized our right to self-determination. We held a referendum two times, one in 1991 and one in 2006. Hence we believe that, whatever the results might be, this referendum was an expression of a people’s right to self-determination.”
On March 16, a referendum was held in Crimea on the status of the Ukrainian peninsula, which was deemed illegal by Kiev, the United States and the EU. Citizens had to answer one of two questions: “Are you in favor of the reunification of Crimea with Russia as a part of the Russian Federation?” or “Are you in favor of restoring the 1992 Constitution and the status of Crimea as a part of Ukraine?”
The 1992 Ukrainian Constitution along with a declaration of independence established the Republic of Crimea’s status and authority within Ukraine and granted Crimea the right to draft a budget and manage its own property.
According to the announcement made on March 17 by the head of the referendum committee, Mikhail Malishev, 96.77% of the 1,233,000 people who took part voted for a reunification with the Russian Federation.
After the referendum took place US President Barack Obama, in a phone call to Russian President Vladimir Putin, announced that neither the US, nor the international community will recognize the referendum that was held against the Ukrainian Constitution and under Russian military intervention. France, Great Britain, Canada and Japan have also announced that they do not recognize the results of the March 16 referendum.
In a joint statement, President of the European Council Herman Van Rampuy and President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso, announced that the Crimean Referendum is illegal and its results will not be recognized.
On March 17 the Parliament of Crimea approved a decision on the “Independence of Crimea.”
The Parliament has also called on the Russian Federation to accept the Republic of Crimea as a new region of the Russian Federation and is seeking UN recognition.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic issued the following statement on March 17:
Regarding the referendum on the status of Crimea
“Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (the Artsakh Republic) considers the referendum held on March 16 in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea as yet another manifestation of realization of the right of people to self-determination.
The right of every people to choose its path of development and determine its destiny on its own through democratic expression of will, as it is enshrined in the UN Charter and a number of fundamental international documents, is a key principle of international law.
The experience of recent years, in particular the referendums envisaged in Catalonia and Scotland prove that the recognition and realization of the inalienable right of people to self-determination is the most optimal and democratic way for the peaceful settlement of this kind of issues.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic hopes that the situation following the referendum in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea will be addressed and resolved in the legal context exclusively by peaceful means.”
Stepanakert,
17.03.2014
