YEREVAN, AUGUST 30, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijan doesn’t allow the Armenians of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) to live and is ignoring international law, Xavier Bertrand, the President of the Regional Council of the French region of Hauts-de-France said at a press conference in Armenia.

Bertrand is visiting Armenia together with the Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo and other regional officials from France to escort humanitarian aid for Nagorno-Karabakh.

“Everyone who’s here today knows very well whats happening in Artsakh. But we can’t say the same about many who are outside Armenia. Many don’t know that in 2023 Azerbaijan doesn’t allow the Armenians of Artsakh to live. Many don’t know that children in Artsakh are unable to eat normally, that newborns don’t have sufficient food, and many don’t know that access to gas, water and electricity is very limited there. These people are deprived of everything because of Azerbaijan, which is disregarding international law. This is why representatives of various French regions joined and organized this humanitarian convoy, in order for people to be able to live with dignity, until international law fully functions. And we were barred. And we want to raise and condemn this,” Bertrand said, calling on other international actors to initiate humanitarian aid to Artsakh as well. 

He said that French President Emmanuel Macron should introduce a resolution in the UNSC for the people of Artsakh.

“We are all demanding the French President to introduce a resolution in the UNSC for the people of Artsakh,” he said.

“Azerbaijan wants to turn Nagorno-Karabakh into a prison and expel the residents. We don’t want Nagorno-Karabakh to become a cage, we want the residents there to live freely,” Xavier Bertrand said.

“Naturally, there are other problems in Europe regarding the events in Ukraine, but a tragedy is unfolding here as well, and we stand by Armenia and Artsakh,” he said.

“Do we have to wait for several days, or weeks, or a month, until there are hundreds of deaths in Artsakh? Do we really have to wait for this to happen for the international community to wake up?” he added.