Statement by Mr. Elmar Mammadyarov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, at a Ministerial Meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement on “Promulgation and Implementation of Unilateral Coercive Measures, in violation of International Law and the Human Rights of the Peoples subjected to them”

September 20, 2017

New-York, USA

At the outset, I would like to express our deep appreciation to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela for today’s meeting which would allow us to address this important topic.

Being the second largest group of states after the United Nations, NAM is playing a crucial role in maintaining the international peace and security, and addressing a wide range of issues from regional security to social and economic development.

NAM is a true defender of justice and the rule of law in international relations. Being a viable and dynamic platform for the representations of diverse ideologies, NAM addresses the issues plaguing the world and matters of international concern.

Unilateral coercive measures used against developing countries are contrary to international law, the Charter of UN and the norms and principles governing peaceful relations among States and affect the spirit of dialogue and political understanding among nations. It represents a breach of international peace and security and violates the principle of non-interference in internal affairs of sovereign States.

Unilateral coercive measures prevent the economic and social development of the population of the affected country and have a negative impact on the human rights of people, in particular the rights of everyone to a standard of living adequate for their health and well-being, including food and medical care, housing and the necessary social services.

It will be impossible for a state targeted to successfully embark upon the path towards sustainable development envisaged in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, for which all Member States have pledged support. In both economic and human development terms, unilateral coercive measures constrain and undermine the capacity of a State to mobilize resources for the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals. Taking this in mind, Azerbaijan applied to hold Expo-2025 in Baku. We are very much looking forward for the support by the NAM member states to the candidature of Azerbaijan, the only NAM candidate at the elections in Bureau for International Exhibitions.

Azerbaijan supports the importance of dialogue to promote the peaceful settlement of disputes and, in this regard, supports to engaging in constructive dialogue between parties to the conflict. We believe that the key to solving the problem lies in the countries’ goodwill and readiness to seek mutually acceptable compromises.

Azerbaijan attaches a special importance to NAM’s principles and purposes. By carrying out independent foreign policy and not being a party to any military alliance, Azerbaijan makes consistent efforts to preserve international norms and principles and advance democratization, the respect for human rights and social justice on national and international level.

As a strong supporter of NAM goals and principles, I have the honour to invite NAM member states to Azerbaijan for the Ministerial Meeting. We propose April of 2018 and circulate an appropriate note verbale in this regard. I hope that with your unanimous support we will meet again at the level of Foreign Ministers in Baku next year.

In this connection, we would like to reiterate our commitment to the principles, purposes and spirit of the Charter of the United Nations, in particular the principles of the sovereign equality of States, non-intervention and non-interference in internal affairs of states. It is the duty and responsibility of every Member State to comply strictly with these principles which do not permit the use of unilateral coercive measures and which are in violation of international law.

Thank you.