About the NKR Office
NKR Representative in USA
Office Staff
Position Papers
Artsakh Newsletter
Press Releases
Events and Speeches
Visa and Travel Information
Contact Us
Country Overview
President
National Assembly
Government
NKR Army
State Symbols
NKR Constitution
National Holidays
History
Geography
Culture
Education
Mass Media
NGOs
Travel, Tourism & General Info
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
NKR Representations Abroad
10 Reasons to Invest in Artsakh
A Word from the Prime Minister
Economic Reforms
Tax Policies & Investments
Finances, Banks, Foreign Trade
Agriculture
Food Processing
Energy Production
Industry
Doing Business in Karabakh
Introduction
Housing
Water and Sanitation
Health Care
Landmine Clearance
Schools, Culture and Sport
Landslide and Flood Prevention
Road Infrastructure
Civil Society Development
Daily News
NKR Office's Press Releases
Artsakh Newsletter
Articles and Interviews
NKR Position
Brief History
Legal Folder
US Responce and Involvement
Chronology of Key Events
References
Photos
Maps
The Karabagh File
The Black Garden
The Sumgait Tragedy
Ethnic Cleansing In Progress
The Caucasian Knot
More(in MS Word format)
Blueprint for Resolution
Link and Other Materials
Nagorno Karabakh until 1918
Nagorno Karabakh in 1918-20
Establishment of Soviet Rule
Azerbaijans Discrimination
Struggle for Freedom 1923-88
Developments of 1988-90
Sumgait Massacre of 1988
Ethnic Cleansing Campaigns
Declaration of Independence
Armed Conflict 1991-94
Islamic Mercenaries in NK War
1990 USSR Law on Secession
Statements
Speeches
Interviews
Quotes
Overview
OSCE Minsk Conference
Documents
The Cease-Fire Agreement
Prospects for Peace
Current Developments
Why is there a conflict?
Parties to the Conflict
Independence or Reunification?
Khojaly
Maragha
Shahumian
Nation Building
Sovereignty
Controlled Territories
Blockade
Refugees

Independence or Reunification?

The modern stage of the Artsakh Liberation Movement has started in 1988 with the idea of reunification with Armenia. Following decades of discrimination and suppression by the Soviet Azerbaijan, Karabakh Armenians initiated a regular attempt to restore the historic injustice of including millennia-old Armenian principality into the newly-created Soviet Azerbaijani republic in 1921.

On February 20, 1988, the extraordinary session of the (Soviet) Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Oblast’s (NKAO) Council of Peoples Deputies made a historic decision. This included an appeal to the Soviet Azerbaijan to secede from the region, an appeal to the Soviet Armenia for unification, and an appeal to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to recognize this shift based upon legal norms and on precedents in resolving similar disputes in the USSR.

However, Azeri authorities appeared to be incapable for a civilized discussion of this matter, and a wave of anti-Armenian violence took place around the republic. Massacres and pogroms of Armenians were organized in major Azerbaijani cities – Baku, Sumgait, Kirovabad, Shamkhor; hundreds of miles away from the NKAO proper. Atrocities claimed hundreds of innocent lives, around 450,000 were forced out of their houses.

After the failed coup d'etat in 1991 in Moscow, Russia, Soviet republics launched the process of achieving state sovereignty. In this connection on August 30, 1991 the Supreme Council of Azerbaijan adopted the declaration on restoration the state independence, which proclaimed an independent Republic of Azerbaijan - the successor of the Republic of Azerbaijan of 1918-1920.

Here, it worth mentioning that the Azerbaijani Republic of 1918-1920 did not include Nagorno Karabakh, which was recognized as a disputed territory by the League of Nations. Moreover, Azerbaijan has been refused in membership of the organization, due to the aggressive policy by the newly-created Turkish-backed Azerbaijan towards its regional neighbors.

Realizing the necessity of urgent actions to preserve the Nagorno Karabakh Armenians from a complete physical extermination, and taking advantage of then acting Soviet legislation, a joint session of the People's Deputies of the Nagorno Karabakh and Shahumian regional councils, on September 2, 1991 declared the establishment of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR) within the borders of the former NKAO and the Shahumian region (Full text of the Declaration: http://nkrusa.org/nk_conflict/declaration_independence.shtml#one). Thus, the Nagorno Karabakh legislature has enjoyed the right, envisaged by the USSR law of April 3, 1990 'Concerning the Procedure of Secession of a Soviet Republic from the USSR'. According to the law, in case of a Soviet Republic’s withdrawal from the USSR, autonomous entities and densely settled minority regions in that republic were given the right to independently determine their political-administrative status (Full text of the law: http://nkrusa.org/nk_conflict/ussr_law.shtml).

Days before the official dissolution of the Soviet Union, on December 10, 1991, a referendum was held in Nagorno Karabakh. Overwhelming majority of Artsakh’s population voted for independence of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic. Artsakh citizens of Azerbaijani origin, who formed around 18% of population, were also offered to participate in the referendum. However, Azeri minority in Nagorno Karabakh boycotted the plebiscite

Parliamentary elections of the NKR followed forming the first government.

Since the very first day of the Karabakh movement, Artsakh authorities have been acting in full compliance with the acting legislation and international norms. The Nagorno Karabakh Republic, Artsakh remains determined to continue building a free and democratic state, with effective government and active civil society.


734 15th Street, Suite 500, Washington, DC 20005
tel: (202) 481-3341, e-mail: info@nkrusa.org