Alicia Kearns, Conservative MP for Rutland and Melton and Chair of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, said that “the UN must urgently send a monitoring team to Nagorno-Karabakh, it is long overdue, to ensure the safety of 120,000+ ethnic Armenians».

She added that “Situation is extremely grave, with concerns around starvation & collapse of health services following blockades and now military force by Baku”.

On 3 October, UK Ambassador to Armenia John Gallagher visited Goris, Syunik, to learn more about the situation on the ground related to the vulnerable population displaced from Artsakh. He met with displaced people in Goris to learn first-hand about their needs. He also met with representatives of international organisations such as UNICEF, the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) and People in Need, to learn about the support provided to affected people.

The Embassy recalled that the UK announced a £1 million funding to ICRC as it “provides life-saving medication, healthcare and other essential support to vulnerable people from Nagorno-Karabakh who face acute humanitarian challenges”, whereas the Start Fund (to which the UK is a major donor) has allocated £350,000 to support those arriving in Armenia from Artsakh.

John Gallagher, said “The situation related to the Nagorno-Karabakh events has put a tremendous amount of strain on communities. The financial aid from the UK will help families and give the most vulnerable people vital support. The UK will continue to support Armenia’s resilience, security, and development of economic opportunities for all”.

The Archbishop of Canterbury went on a two-day visit to Armenia earlier this month, meeting Church leaders, senior government officials, NGOs as well as refugees who have recently forcibly fled Artsakh.

Archbishop Justin Welby is on a five-day visit to the South Caucasus. In Armenia, the Archbishop visited the Armenian Genocide Memorial, and met His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians. During the meeting, the Archbishop of Canterbury noted: “Armenia was the first Christian kingdom. You were the first region to have the cross as your symbol. This is a symbol of weight, pain and struggle. Armenia has often carried the cross of pain and struggle. The last weeks have seen so many Armenians suffer deeply. I have been praying for you daily. I come here to say you are not forgotten”.

You can read the full news update here.

The Chairperson of ANC UK attended a meeting at the House of Lords, hosted by the Bishop of Southwark and initiated by Bishop Manukyan. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the crisis which unraveled around Artsakh, and to hear about Archbishop of Canterbury’s recent visit to the Caucasus, focusing on the forcibly displaced and their right to return.

Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Nadia Murad has called on the world to work together and find a solution amid the ongoing “crimes against humanity” taking place in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) as a result of Azerbaijan’s attacks.

You can read the full article here.

As the world focuses on the intensifying war in Gaza, the UK has been backing another occupation and blockade, of the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan, an oil- and mineral-rich autocracy where the UK has significant business interests.

Read the article here.

Read the article by Christina Maranci in The Time about the cultural genocide that the Armenian monuments will face in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) here.

“Azerbaijan is a corrupt and unstable dictatorship that oppresses its own people and is potentially threatened by both Iran and Russia, with Russia having lost influence in the region due to Turkish infiltration into the South Caucasus. Artsakh met all legal provisions for international recognition, given what should have been Azerbaijan’s actual legally claimable territory at the USSR’s fall. Therefore, Artsakh’s people should never give up the hope of returning to their ancient homeland as a free and independent nation with international peacekeepers, if the opportunity permits, by establishing a government-in-exile».

Read the full article here.

France has initiated a new discussion in the UN Security Council to adopt a resolution to create the conditions for the return of the forcibly displaced population of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna has said in the Senate.

Catherine Colonna said that the conditions must include strong guarantees for the rights of the Armenians of Artsakh, including for the  preservation of historical-cultural rights, which requires a permanent international presence on the ground.

Colonna said that “Azerbaijan planned and organized the displacement of more than 100,000 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. This is an extremely grave crime that cannot remain unanswered”.

Read more here.

Armenia has named the ten provisional measures it seeks the ICJ to determine against Azerbaijan. The request was submitted by Armenia’s agent Yeghishe Kirakosyan during the on the request for indication of provisional measures filed by Armenia against Azerbaijan.

Among other measures, Armenia asks the ICJ to order Azerbaijan to refrain from “preventing the safe and expeditious return to their homes of persons displaced”, to “withdraw all military and law-enforcement personnel from all civilian establishments in Nagorno-Karabakh”, allow access of the United Nations and Red Cross, “refrain from taking punitive actions against the current or former political representatives or military personnel of Nagorno-Karabakh”, “not alter or destroy any monument commemorating the 1915 Armenian genocide or any other monument or Armenian cultural artefact or site present in Nagorno-Karabakh” and “recognize and give effect to civil registers, identity documents and property titles” issued by the authorities of Nagorno-Karabakh.

You can read the complete presentation here.

 The European Parliament has adopted a resolution on October 5 condemning Azerbaijan’s military aggression against Artsakh and calling on the EU to sanction Azerbaijani officials responsible for the attacks that led to numerous human rights violations. The resolution was adopted with 491 votes in favour, 9 against and 36 abstentions.

You can access the full resolution here.