Politics of Artsakh takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Artsakh is the head of state and the head of government, and of a multi-party system; as of 2009, American-based non-governmental organisation Freedom House ranks the Artsakh above both Armenia and Azerbaijan in terms of political and civil rights. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the Government and the National Assembly. The republic is de facto independent and de jure a part of Azerbaijan. None of the elections in Artsakh are recognised by international bodies such as the OSCE Minsk Group, the European Union and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, as well as numerous individual countries, such as Azerbaijan and Turkey, who also condemned and called them a source of increased tensions.
The National Assembly of the Republic of Artsakh is the legislative branch of the government of the Republic of Artsakh.
The Prime Minister of Artsakh was the head of government of the unrecognized Republic of Artsakh between 1992 and 2017.
The Community for Democracy and Rights of Nations, also commonly known as Commonwealth of Unrecognized States, rarely as CIS-2, is an international organisation uniting several states in the former Soviet Union, all of which have limited recognition from the international community.
The Republic of Artsakh is a republic with limited recognition in the South Caucasus region. Republic of Artsakh controls most of the territory of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast and some of the surrounding area. It is recognized by only three other non-UN member states, Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transnistria. The rest of the international community recognizes Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan. In November 2012, a member of Uruguay's foreign relations committee stated that his country could recognize Nagorno-Karabakh's independence. In 2012, Armenia and Tuvalu established diplomatic relations and it was perceived that Tuvalu may recognize Nagorno Karabakh’s independence. Also in 2012, the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state, called upon the Australian government to recognise Nagorno-Karabakh. In September 2014, the Basque Parliament in Spain adopted a motion supporting Nagorno-Karabakh's right to self-determination.
Law enforcement in the Republic of Artsakh is inconsistently enforced, as the region is a de facto independent republic officially part of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and is governed by the unrecognized National Assembly. According to a report prepared by British parliamentarian and rapporteur David Atkinson, presented to Political Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), "the borders of Azerbaijan were internationally recognised at the time of the country being recognised as independent state in 1991," and "the territory of Azerbaijan included the Nagorno-Karabakh region." Therefore, law enforcement in Nagorno-Karabakh would in theory be the responsibility of the Azerbaijan police.
Bako Sahakyan is the third president of the de facto Republic of Artsakh. He was first elected as President on 19 July 2007. On 19 July 2012 he was re-elected for a second five-year term, receiving approximately two-thirds of the votes. In 2017 he was re-elected indirectly for a three-year term. Sahakyan replaced Arkadi Ghukasyan, who had held the presidential post for two five-year terms.
Artsakh Air, also referred to as Artsakhavia, was an airline scheduled to operate from the airport in Stepanakert in 2017. It had a head office on the grounds of Stepanakert Airport. It has never started operations. The Artsakh Air fleet consisted of the following aircraft:
Artsakh State University is the oldest, largest and by far the most respected university in the Republic of Artsakh. Over the course of its nearly 50-year history, Artsakh State University has produced over 20,000 graduates in 60 fields of study. Currently, the university prepares specialists in 31 areas. Instructional languages are Armenian and Russian. The university has established close ties with other educational institutions and universities in Armenia and other countries. Artsakh State University is the university with the best reputation in Artsakh.
The Artsakh national football team is the national representative of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), which is internationally unrecognized. Consequently, it is not a member of FIFA or UEFA and is therefore not eligible to enter the World Cup or the European Championship.
An ordinary Artsakh passport is dark red, with the Republic of Artsakh's coat of arms emblasoned in gold in the center of the front cover. It is almost identical to the Armenian Passport. The words "Republic of Artsakh" and "Passport" in the Armenian and English languages also appear on the front cover. The passport is valid for 10 years from the time of issue, the contents of the passport are in the Armenian and English languages.
Karen Mirzoyan is a citizen of the unrecognized Artsakh Republic. In September 2012 he became the Republic's Minister of Foreign Affairs.
This page provides links to other pages comprising the lists of airports in Asia.
The European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD) is a grassroots umbrella organization which represents a significant part of the Armenian diaspora in Europe. The EAFJD is the main interlocutor promoting Armenian issues in the European Union and international organizations.
