Yerevan /Mediamax/. Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan stated today that "continued aggressions against the Republic of Armenia and occupation of our sovereign territories continue to pose imminent risks for our region”

He said this in his remarks delivered at the official welcoming ceremony for Armenia in ICC.

“Armenia’s consistent cooperative approach to the ICC is based on the following major objectives:

1) preventing the most serious crimes which are of concern to the international community as a whole,

2) strengthening the rule of law in the international community,

3) achieving more universality of the ICC.”

Armenia believes that it is extremely important to establish an international judicial system which ensures punishment for persons who have committed genocide and other serious crimes. For decades, Armenia has been an initiator and pioneer in the processes of prevention and condemnation of the crime of genocide, both within the framework of the United Nations and other international organizations and forums.

ICC’s role in crime prevention and ensuring fair and impartial justice process for peaceful resolution of conflicts is significant. Unfortunately, in our region, we were confronted not only by complete unwillingness to resolve the issue by peaceful means but also with a clear intent to proliferate war, hatred and terror.

Continued aggressions against the Republic of Armenia and occupation of our sovereign territories, heinous atrocity crimes perpetrated against Armenians, ethnic cleansing of Nagorno Karabakh, as a result of which over 100.000 Armenians had to escape their homes to find shelter in Armenia, had devastating humanitarian consequences and continue to pose imminent risks for our region. In this context, we are convinced that the Rome Statute among other mechanisms has real potential to prevent any further escalation and atrocities, becoming a milestone towards stability and sustainable peace in our region,” Ararat Mirzoyan said.