The National Council's AYE on Peace Forum for Nagorno-Karabakh: Comment

Armenian News Platform Civilnet

Today, the Swiss Parliament adopted a resolution urging Swiss authorities to establish a forum for dialogue between representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan. The goal: to facilitate the safe, collective, and dignified return of the displaced Armenian population to their homeland. This decision highlights a growing international acknowledgment of a critical question: Will the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) be allowed to return to their ancestral lands?

The forced displacement of Nagorno-Karabakh’s entire Armenian population represents not just a humanitarian catastrophe but a profound regional crisis. At its heart lies the imperative to address a grave injustice while laying the groundwork for sustainable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The right of return for displaced peoples is enshrined in international law and diplomatic norms. This principle has been affirmed by multiple legal precedents and international resolutions, including the International Court of Justice’s ruling in November 2023 and the European Parliament’s resolutions of March and October 2024. These authoritative statements unequivocally call on Azerbaijan to ensure the safe and dignified return of the Armenians.

Yet, time is slipping away. Azerbaijan continues its systematic erasure of Armenian cultural, historical, and communal heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh. Each day of inaction makes this process more difficult to reverse. Monuments, churches, cemeteries, and other symbols of Armenian identity are being destroyed or altered, severing the tangible links between displaced people and their homeland. This campaign undermines not only the possibility of a meaningful return but also the region’s prospects for enduring peace.

The return of Armenians to Nagorno-Karabakh is not just a humanitarian obligation—it is a strategic necessity for lasting stability in the South Caucasus. History teaches us that peace built on the forced removal of an ethnic group is no peace at all. Grievances left unresolved become fertile ground for further violence and instability. If Azerbaijan is sincere in its claims of seeking peace and reconciliation, it must facilitate the return of the displaced population while preserving the cultural and historical fabric of the region.

While the international community has expressed support for the principle of return, the Armenian government has failed to prioritize this issue. As a result, the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh remain without effective representation at the negotiating table. Who will advocate for them? If neither Armenia nor Azerbaijan takes meaningful steps toward ensuring their safe, voluntary, and dignified return, who will champion their cause? Will they be left to endure permanent exile in silence?

Although Azerbaijan claims it welcomes the return of displaced people, these assertions lack credible mechanisms or guarantees to ensure safety, security, dignity, and fundamental rights. Without such assurances, these promises remain empty rhetoric. True, sustainable return requires robust mechanisms to address those critical concerns. Yet these elements are conspicuously absent from current bilateral negotiations.

Switzerland’s offer to facilitate dialogue is a welcome step forward. In the face of displacement and cultural erasure, the people of Nagorno-Karabakh need tangible international support. Concrete action is essential to ensure their right of return becomes more than an abstract principle.

The Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh have endured profound suffering, but their story must not end here. As Luis Moreno Ocampo, former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, rightly observed a few days ago in Yerevan, the fight for the fundamental rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh must persist, for the day this struggle is abandoned is the day justice is lost.