Dajan Topalovid, Republic of Azerbaijan Opening speech 15. 4.

2014

Honorable Chairs, Distinguished Representatives, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a privilige and an honour for me to addreess the General Assembly today and to represent the Republic of Azerbaijan and its citizens. In the beginning we would like to point out that good neighborhood, friendly relations and cooperation among States are the basis for reaching any agreement. Unfortunately, we have to admit, that not all States respect those values, neither are their behaviour and their actions in international relations in compliance with the generally accepted norms and principles of international law. Ladies and Gentlemen, For over 20 years the international community has witnessed the flagrant violation of the UN Charter and other documents of international law by the Republic of Armenia. More than one fifth of our territory is under occupation, millions of people are displaced, without homes, water and food. Our cultural and historical heritage has been destroyed. Our national and regional peace and security is endangered. The international community should press Armenia even harder to respect the globally accepted norms and values, especially our territorial integrity and human rights. In regard to the themes of this year's General Assembly session we would like to express the following: As a State, we are fully aware of the importance of preserving biodiversity and protecting species before extinction. We should treat humanely all sort of animals and they should not be tortured or maltreated whatever their ''destiny'' is, living in natural habitats or on a farm. Secondly Azerbaijan is not just place of beautiful nature and animals, but it has been a place of coexistence and tolerance between different faiths, ethnic groups and philosophies. Minorities are part of any country, of its history, of its presence and with appropriate international mechanism, of its future! Every country wants their people in neighboring countries to be protected. None of you wants your own Armenia and genocide on your own people. And last but not least, actually one of the most important global challenges are environmental and developmental issues. We believe that environmental challenges need to be addressed through further strengthening international and environmental governance.

Dajan Topalovid, Republic of Azerbaijan Opening speech 15. 4. 2014

As a country suffering from the devastation of war and occupation we believe that friendly relations, cooperation and most important respect of all our common values and internationally accepted norms, will make situation in this world better. Thank you!