Artsakh Ministry of Culture responds to Azerbaijan

The Artsakh Ministry of Culture has issued a strong response to recent remarks by the spokesperson of Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry regarding the removal of a monument to renowned Armenian marine artist Ivan (Hovhannes) Aivazovsky in Stepanakert. According to the ministry, Baku’s claims are legally unfounded, manipulative and distort the reality on the ground.

“The Aivazovsky statue was installed in 2021 as part of a legitimate and transparent initiative involving the state institutions of the Republic of Artsakh, the Russian community of Artsakh and the Russian Federation's peacekeeping mission. Claims that the monument was erected "without permission" from the Azerbaijani authorities and therefore dismantled are baseless attempts to justify an act of cultural vandalism,” the ministry said in a statement on Friday.

“It must be clearly emphasized that the independent Republic of Artsakh made decisions with full sovereign authority and was under no obligation to seek "permission" from the leadership of a neighboring state.

“Following the forced displacement of Artsakh’s population in September 2023, the Azerbaijani occupation administration has deliberately engaged in the systematic destruction of Armenian cultural and historical heritage. This includes the removal of statues of Stepan Shahumyan and Alexander Myasnikyan, along with dozens of monuments dedicated to the Great Patriotic War, as well as the targeting of cultural centers, museums, churches and medieval cemeteries,” it stressed.

The ministry further highlighted the historical irony that the name Stepanakert itself was designated by Azerbaijan’s authorities in 1923 in honor of Armenian revolutionary and Baku Commissars leader Stepan Shahumyan. “Thus, allegations that Armenian monuments in the city were "illegally installed" lack both historical and legal credibility,” the statement added.

The Ministry of Culture called on international organizations, including the United Nations, UNESCO, the Council of Europe and global human rights groups, to take urgent action to counter the ongoing cultural genocide in Artsakh.

“In the face of blatant violations of international law, inaction amounts to complicity in crimes against cultural heritage,” the ministry concluded.