Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee, for inviting the Armenian National Committee of Canada to provide evidence to you today.
My name is Shahen Mirakian, and I am the co-president of the Armenian National Committee of Canada. I apologize for not being able to join you in person today.
Today's meeting is to study the present situation of the blockade of the Lachin corridor. My evidence today will not go into detail about the background and current circumstances of the blockade of the Goris-Stepanakert highway through the Berdzor-Lachin corridor by groups directed by the Azerbaijani government. Instead, I will discuss the impact of the blockade on the Armenian Canadian community and Canada's role in preventing this ongoing genocide.
To fully appreciate the evidence I am providing, it is necessary to understand that this road, through this narrow corridor, is the only land connection between the Republic of Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, or Artsakh. This highway is used to transport the necessities of life to Artsakh, including food and medical supplies. It is also used to transport patients to better-equipped hospitals in Armenia, which is particularly important during the current global pandemic.
In addition to the Goris-Stepanakert highway, the Lachin corridor contains a pipeline supplying natural gas from Armenia to Artsakh. The connections providing electricity and telecommunications connectivity from Armenia to Artsakh are also in the area of this corridor, though not necessarily directly within its territory. Therefore, in addition to blocking the transport of supplies on the highway, Azerbaijan also has the ability to block the supply of gas and electricity to Artsakh and to block Artsakh's ability to communicate with the outside world.
In the most basic terms, the safety and survival of Artsakh's 120,000 current residents is entirely dependent on the Lachin corridor and surrounding areas remaining free of any disruption of the free movement of people and supplies from and to Armenia.
Since December 12, 2022, there has been an almost complete cessation of the movement of traffic on the road and periodic, significant disruptions of the supply of gas, electricity and communications. This has resulted in a humanitarian catastrophe that has had a significant impact on the Armenian Canadian community. Every member of the community has a significant connection to at least one person in Artsakh. These are their relatives and friends who are trapped, starving and freezing.
For our community, this is not some peripheral story about the waning of Russian influence or some philosophical argument about how to enforce international law. For us, we know that, despite the defiance and unbreakable spirit of our friends and relatives, the Azerbaijani blockade is a serious and constant threat to them and to the survival of Artsakh's people.
This is exactly the kind of situation that requires intervention from the international community, including Canada. For us, the time for patience or debate has long since passed. The issue is long past the need for further study.
On December 14, 2022, the Canadian government called on the Azerbaijani authorities to open the road and said that it was following the closure of the corridor closely. I am almost certain the Canadian government completely underestimated the gravity of the situation at that point. The government probably thought that Azerbaijan was just putting some pressure on Armenia. They assumed that someone else would take care of it, and they believed that their concern would be sufficient.
At that time, the Armenian Canadian community warned the government about the gravity of the situation. We explained that, without actual concrete action from the international community, the Azerbaijani government would never end the blockade. Unless there were real consequences, there would be no end to the Azerbaijani threats to the lives of the people of Artsakh and Armenia.
Today we are repeating those concerns, this time backed up by the experience of the past six weeks. We call upon the Government of Canada to use its moral standing and considerable international influence to work with our allies to immediately end the Azerbaijani blockade and put in place the necessary conditions to assure the security of the people of Artsakh. Canada must raise this issue in all international bodies where it and Azerbaijan are members, including the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Canada must treat this situation as a foreign policy priority.
We are confident that the Government of Canada will be more receptive, and this time we expect to see tangible steps taken immediately.
Thank you.