On August 23, the Permanent Representation of Armenia organized a discussion at the UN Headquarters, during which the expert opinion of Juan Mendez, former Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide, professor of human rights at the American University of Washington, on the ongoing blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh and the possibilities of using the prevention toolkit by the UN was presented. Attending the diplomats were diplomats from UN Security Council member states and a number of other countries.
In his opening remarks, Armenia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Mher Margaryan presented the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, noting that the humanitarian crisis continues to worsen. Referring to the urgent meeting of the UN Security Council convened on August 16 at the request of Armenia, the envoy stressed that the UN cannot allow another crime to be committed and must take clear steps to prevent it.
Professor Mendez, in particular, emphasized that in the context of the current situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, the refusal to comply with the mandatory judgment of the International Court of Justice is a sign to launch the early prevention tools in order to prevent the genocide. According to the expert opinion of Professor Mendez, the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh is a sufficient basis for the international community to activate early warning mechanisms and the principle of responsibility to protect.
During the discussion following the presentation of the report, Juan Mendes answered a number of questions raised by the present delegations.
