European Parliament urges Azerbaijan to open Lachin corridor in Nagorno-Karabakh

BRUSSELS. Jan 19 (Interfax) - The European Parliament passed a resolution in Strasbourg on Thursday, expressing regret over humanitarian consequences of the blockade of the Lachin corridor in Nagorno-Karabakh by "self-proclaimed environmentalists from Azerbaijan."

"With the corridor being the only road connecting the war-torn region with Armenia and the outside world, members of the European Parliament urge Azerbaijan to reopen it immediately, in order to enable freedom of movement and ensure access to essential goods and services for the most vulnerable," the document, published by the European Parliament, said.

The resolution stresses the need for a comprehensive peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which would guarantee the rights and safety of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh. It calls for international organizations to be given access the area to provide necessary humanitarian aid and for a UN or Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) fact-finding mission to be allowed to visit the Lachin corridor to assess the humanitarian situation on the ground.

Further, MEPs called for the Russian peacekeepers in the area to be replaced by OSCE international peacekeepers.

The resolution also criticizes the "inactivity of the Minsk group" set up by the OSCE to mediate the Karabakh conflict.