Karabakh in International Law

There is universal recognition in international law that Nagorno-Karabakh remains under the sovereign territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan and that Armenian occupying forces should withdraw from the region. The following United Nations Security Council resolutions have been passed with respect to Nagorno-Karabakh:

• Resolution 822, agreed on 30 April 1993
• Resolution 853, agreed on 29 July 1993
• Resolution 874, agreed on 14 October 1993
• Resolution 884, agreed on 12 November 1993
• UN General Assembly Resolution A/RES/48/114
• Annex 1, Statement of the OSCE chairman-in-office
• Resolution 21/9-P(IS), Islamic Summit Conference
• Conference for Security and Co-operation in Europe, First Additional Meeting of the Council, Helsinki, March 1992, Summary of Conclusions
• Conference for Security and Co-operation in Europe, 1994 Budapest Summit
• Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, 1996 Lisbon Summit, 2-3 December 1996

Each of these resolutions reaffirms both the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, the inviolability of international borders and the inadmissibility on the use of force for the acquisition of territory. Moreover, on 14 March 2008, the United Nations General Assembly passed a non-binding resolution by a vote of 39 to 7, with 100 abstentions, reaffirming Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, expressing support for that country's internationally recognized borders and demanding the immediate withdrawal of all Armenian forces from all occupied territories there.

Some international commentators have noted that resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict rests on whether the principle of sovereign integrity or self-determination should apply in this case. However, considering self-determination in this case - which is what Armenians have been calling for - is misleading, since self-determination only applies when the people in question do not have a sovereign land, which clearly does not apply in the case of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.