Nagorno-Karabakh residents overwhelmingly voted in a referendum Sunday on the republic's constitution, to reaffirm the predominantly Armenian region's independence from Azerbaijan. More than 100 international observers and journalists from Russia, France, the United States, Italy, Israel, Serbia and other countries monitored the referendum.
"This referendum is a farce and it is not worth wasting time on it," Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Elmar Mamedyarov said.
The United States, the European Union and other international organizations, including the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), have said no country will recognize the referendum's results, Mamedyarov said.
According to preliminary results, "A total of 78,389 voters (87%) out of 89,044 eligible voters participated in the poll, with 77,279 people, or 98.58% of the electorate, casting their ballots in favor of the constitution, while 549 people or 0.7% voted against it," said Sergei Nasibyan, the chairman of the Nagorno-Karabakh central election commission.
Nasibyan said there was no voter turnout threshold at the referendum, but according to the unrecognized republic's legislation, at least one-third of registered voters were required to vote in favor of the constitution for it to be adopted.
But the Azeri foreign minister said it was hardly possible that the alleged 83% of the republic's population had come to the polls.
"If we want lawful decisions to be made, we must ensure the participation of absolutely all citizens of both Armenian and Azerbaijani origin and, without that, all measures cannot be regarded as serious," Mamedyarov said.
The conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh first erupted in 1988 when it declared its independence from Azerbaijan, and moved to join Armenia. Over 30,000 people were killed on both sides in fighting between 1988 and 1994, and over 100 died following a 1994 ceasefire. Nagorno-Karabakh remained in Armenian hands, but tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia have persisted.
The Azerbaijani leadership is determined to restore its control over the separatist region.
