Former Canadian MP Jim Karygiannis congratulates the people of Nagrono-Karabakh

Former Canadian MP Jim Karygiannis congratulates the people of Nagrono-Karabakh –

News.am – Canadian politician, former Canadian House member Jim Karygiannis congratulated the people of Nagorno-Karabakh on Independence Day.

The congratulatory message runs as follows:

“I would like to take this opportunity to extend my best wishes to members of the Canadian Armenian community and the people of Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) on the occasion of Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) Independence Day.

On December 10, 1991, days before the official dissolution of the Soviet Union, a referendum on independence was held in Nagorno Karabakh. The overwhelming majority of Artsakh’s population voted in favour of independence.

The people of Artsakh consider September 2nd the day The Republic of Nagorno Karabakh was proclaimed. The occasion is marked as a state holiday.

The Nagorno Karabakh Republic is a de facto independent, democratic and fully functioning state, with a thriving market economy and a dynamic civil society, which is working toward entrenching its freedom and the formal recognition of its independence.

The area is still a conflict zone. In the summer of 2014, deadly skirmishes broke out along the Karabakh-Azerbaijani border which took the lives of young Azseris and Armenians. The OSCE Minsk Group has thus far failed to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict, as the temporary peace — although fragile — has allowed the primary parties to continually put off a more substantive, long-lasting peace settlement. I believe it is time that the international community encourages both sides to get back to the negotiating table and find a solution. The international community also has to hold the Azerbaijanis accountable for past infractions of breaking the peace negotiations.

In July 2012, I led a team of Canadian Election Observers for the Presidential Election in The Republic of Nagorno Karabakh. It was a picture perfect election from start to finish and witnessing the election process in a new democracy was a positive learning experience. I also met with government officials, residents of Nagorno Karabakh and members of the Canadian Diaspora who were visiting and learned more about the challenges facing this Artsakh”.