Nagorno-Karabakh says Scottish referendum is another precedent of application of peoples’ right to self-determination

YEREVAN, 19 September. / ARKA /. Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’s foreign ministry has welcomed today the conduct of independence referendum in Scotland, saying regardless of its outcome, it was another precedent that has enriched the world practice of the application of the right of peoples to self-determination.

A statement issued by the foreign ministry in Stepanakert, the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, 

says the referendum has reaffirmed the obvious fact that the recognition of the right of peoples to decide their own destiny is a norm in a democratic society. 

"In this regard, we consider it necessary to recall that it was violation of Nagorno-Karabakh people’s right to self-determination by Azerbaijan that led to massive human rights breaches and deportation of the Armenian population of Azerbaijan and the subsequent full-scale aggression against the Nagorno-Karabakh on part of Azerbaijan, as a result of which  tens of thousands of people were killed and hundreds of thousands became refugees," says the statement.

"The International recognition of the will of the people of Artsakh (the Armenian name of Nagorno-Karabakh), implemented in 1991 and confirmed in 2006, will ensure the irreversibility of the peace process and help focus the efforts on developing  necessary mechanisms and conditions for peaceful coexistence of two independent states - Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan, which emerged as a result of the collapse of the USSR and the war imposed by the Azerbaijani side," it says. 

Scottish voters have resoundingly rejected independence in Thursday referendum, deciding to remain part of the United Kingdom. The decision prevented a rupture of a 307-year union with England. The vote on Thursday -- 55 percent against independence to 45 percent in favor -- saw an unprecedented turnout of just under 85 percent, according to news reports. -0-