YEREVAN, October 28. /ARKA/. An emergency session of Armenia’s National Assembly has ratified today the International Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing and Training of Mercenaries.
“At the moment, the Convention is in force in 36 countries. It stipulates that the recruitment, use, financing and training of mercenaries is a criminal offense that leads to the violation of the principles of sovereignty, the inviolability of territories and the right of nations to self-determination,” Kristine Grigoryan, deputy justice minister said.
According to her, the countries that have ratified the convention undertake not only not to commit the above actions, but also to take the necessary measures to prevent and prosecute such acts.
“By joining the Convention, Armenia can use the 2nd paragraph of Article 5 against Azerbaijan, which ratified the Convention in 1997, for using foreign terrorists as mercenaries. At the same time, the 2nd paragraph of Article 4 can be used against Turkey, which has not ratified the Convention, but acts as a criminal party that is responsible for financing, recruiting, training and sending mercenaries to Azerbaijan,” Grigoryan said.
The Deputy Minister noted that this will allow a UN special group to visit the region to investigate the use of mercenaries and will also allow Armenia to turn to international arbitration and court.