On June 23 Deputy Foreign Minister Artak Apitonian  participated  in the OSCE Annual Security Review Conference via video conference.

The conference was opened by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Albania Edi Rama and OSCE Secretary-General Thomas Greminger.

Deputy Minister Apitonian also addressed the Conference.  Recalling the 45^th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act the Deputy Minister noted that since its adoption in 1975 the OSCE family has grown considerably  first and foremost through the application of the principle of self-determination of peoples.

The Deputy Minister stressed that Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh remain fully committed to the letter and spirit of the 1994 trilateral ceasefire agreement which does not have time limitations. He recalled the recent exchange of journalists between the three parties to the conflict as a good illustration of a confidence building measure which may create opportunities to reduce tensions and prepare populations for peace. Deputy Minister Apitonian expressed his regret over the continuous and repetitive state-level bellicose rhetoric, territorial claims, historical revisionism from the neighboring country which hinder the peace process.

The Deputy Minister underlined that Armenia was among the first countries that supported the appeal of the UN Secretary General for global ceasefire. Armenia welcomed also the statement made by the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs calling for utmost restraint and refraining from any action that could aggravate the situation in the conflict area, bearing in mind the current limitations for exercising monitoring activities. The Deputy Minister noted that despite the calls by the UN Secretary General and the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs Azerbaijan continues to violate the ceasefire regime attacking also the civilians and civilian infrastructure. Moreover, large scale military exercises in clear violation of the OSCE Vienna Document provisions were being conducted thus further exacerbating the fragile security situation. The Deputy Minister emphasized that crisis situations such as the Covid-19 pandemic necessitate a reinforced OSCE engagement in the conflict area.