The UN will send a mission to Nagorno-Karabakh this weekend to primarily assess humanitarian needs, UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric announced on Friday, pointing out that the organization has not had access to the region for about 30 years .
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“The government of Azerbaijan and the UN have agreed on a mission in the region. The mission will take place this weekend,” he said.
“We have not had access to this region for about 30 years” due to “the complicated geopolitical situation,” “so it is very important that we can enter,” the UN Secretary-General’s spokesman added.
The team of around 10 people, led by officials from the UN Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), “will seek to assess the situation on the ground and identify humanitarian needs, both for those remaining and for those moving.”
“We must remember the need for everyone to respect international law, especially human rights,” he added, pointing out, however, that no representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights would be taking part in this “first mission.” would focus only on “humanitarian and protection” issues.
The European Union earlier Friday demanded that a United Nations mission could travel to Nagorno-Karabakh “in the coming days” amid the “exodus” of Armenians fleeing that enclave as a result of Azerbaijan’s military operation.
Stéphane Dujarric also stated that the United Nations is working with the Armenian government to manage this influx of refugees across the border.
“Teams from the High Commission for Refugees have been on the ground at the border since day one, when the first group of refugees arrived exhausted, scared and worried about the future,” he noted. In particular, UNHCR provides technical equipment (computers, tablets, etc.) to enable the registration of refugees.