SUMMIT OF BLACK SEA ECONOMIC COOPERATION ORGANIZATION HELD IN ISTANBUL
The 15th anniversary Summit of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization took place at Chiragan Palace in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 25.
The Summit was attended by leaders of 12 member-states of the organization and representatives of 13 observer countries, including Presidents Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, Ahmet Necdet Sezer of Turkey, Vladimir Putin of Russia, Viktor Yuschenko of Ukraine, Traian Basescu of Romania, Vladimir Voronin of Moldova, Georgi Parvanov of Bulgaria, Mikhail Saakashvili of Georgia, Prime Ministers Konstantinos Karamanlis of Greece and Sali Berisha of Albania, Foreign Ministers of Slovakia and Armenia, as well as representatives of the USA, United Nations, European Union, OSCE, World Bank and World Trade Organization.
Opening the summit Turkish President Sezer said the main goal of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization is to enhance cooperation and strengthen dialogue among its members states.
Other speakers included presidents, premiers and foreign ministers of Bulgaria, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Romania, Armenia Albania, Russia, Serbia and Ukraine.
One of the very interesting moments happened during Armenian FM Vardan Oskanian`s speech, when his claims concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict brought an immediate harsh reaction from Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev.
When Oskanian said “everything is past, and Azerbaijan should now create conditions for people to live normally in Nagorno-Karabah”, the Azerbaijani leader could not help reacting and took the floor.
“First of all, I want to say that the war is not over yet to speak about the victory… Our stance on the dispute is clear, and is based on international law”, Ilham Aliyev said.
“All the member countries of the organization, except one (Armenia) recognize our territorial integrity. Armenia and Azerbaijan are members of a number of international organizations, including the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization, the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Council of Europe. All countries in these organizations respect Azerbaijan`s territorial integrity, including Nagorno-Karabakh”, the Azerbaijani leader added.
President Aliyev said “our proposal towards resolution of the conflict is clear and is based on reality, and we suggest giving a high status of self-governance to the Nagorno-Karabakh, which will allow local Armenians to use their rights”.
“But we will never accept the occupation of our lands. Not only Nagorno-Karabakh, but also seven adjacent regions are under occupation, and it is not acceptable. In the 21st century the policy of ethnic cleansing cannot be considered fair. Therefore, I would like my colleagues to focus their attention on reality rather on attempts to falsify history», the President of Azerbaijan said.
The summit ended with the signing of the joint Declaration.
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