Athens, 23 January 2023. Statement of the I.A.O. secretary general DR. Maximos Charakopoulos
PRESS RELEASE
Athens, 23 January 2023
STATEMENT OF THE I.A.O. SECRETARY GENERAL DR. MAXIMOS CHARAKOPOULOS
Immediately lift the blockade of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh
The international community cannot remain silent!
The Secretary General of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (I.A.O.), Member of the Hellenic Parliament, Dr Maximos Charakopoulos, made the following statement regarding the humananitarian crisis that the Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh is experiencing –due to Azerbaijan’s continued blockade of the only communication route with Armenia: “In the most unequivocal terms we condemn the unacceptable blockade of the Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh for over a month now, under false pretenses by organizations and the authorities of Azerbaijan, endangering the lives of 120.000 Armenian who remain in their ancestral homes. We call the international community to immediately intervene towards a solution of this peculiar siege of the Armenian population, which aims at their extermination or displacement. The indifference or delay in responding to such practices, lead inevitably to repetition and dissemination of similar ones, contrary to international law and humanitarian ideals. As I.A.O., we express our unequivocal support to the Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh and request the immediate intervention of the international community to lift the siege of the long-suffering peoples. In Nagorno-Karabakh we are dealing with a major humanitarian crisis, affecting more than 120.000 Armenians, including 30.000 children, 20.000 senior citizens and 9.000 people with disabilities. The lives of those blockaded are now in serious danger, as they are deprived of food, fuel and medicine, as well as heating, after the natural gas supply was cut off. No civilized person is entitled to remain silent in the face of this crime. We all have to raise our voice so that the Azerbaijani authorities lift the blockade”.