President of Nagorny Karabakh: fight for independence to be main task in 2004

The leadership of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic will stand up for the independence and international recognition of the republic next year. It will be their main task. President of Nagorny Karabakh Arkady Gukasian declared it in his New Year's speech. "All our foreign-policy moves in the New Year will be aimed at the solution of these tasks crucial for Karabakh. I assure you: the leadership of the country will not step off the way chosen by its people," stated Arkady Gukasian.

He also pointed out that the role of non-government and human rights organisations in the creation of civil society in Karabakh has become more important during the last year. "Our progress in the creation of civil society has not remained unnoticed. According to information by Freedom House, a well known American human rights organization, in 2003, Nagorny Karabakh has left behind not only unrecognized states by the level of its democratic development but also neighboring Azerbaijan," announced Arkady Gukasian. All problems in the republic can be solved only by joint efforts, under the conditions of general publicity and transparency in the activity of all government and non-government structures and organisations, he said.