A spokesperson for the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Ministry says the Azerbaijani authorities won’t accept their proposal for a joint use of the water resources of the river Tartar and Sarsants

“There were such statements over the past years, also in the frameworks of the negotiation process. But the Azerbaijani side has always turned them down,” David Babayan told Tert.am.

Vice Prime Minister of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Arthur Aghabejyan had earlier proposed the cooperation plan in comments to the Armenian service of RFE/EL (Azartutyun).

Babayan says he doesn’t think the idea is anything special. He more stresses the need of peaceful co-existence between the two neighboring states.

Nagorno-Karabakh considers the water resources a major security component, as well as a promising trend promoting its own economic development and its cooperation with other states.

Babayan says Azerbaijan used its reservoirs in the Soviet period as key hydro-pressure tool against Nagorno-Karabakh.

“They always built the reservoirs beyond the Nagorno-Karabakh borders, thus preventing us to use our river waters,” he noted.

Babayan said the Sarsang reservoir used to supply irrigation water to a vast land area (128,000 hectares), of which the major part (118,000 hectares) was on Azerbaijan’s territory. Most Azerbaijani villages are now under a desertification threat as the reservoir remains idle.

“The Azerbaijanis have said repeatedly – responding to our proposal – that the areas had better get drained. But the decision affects thousands of people in Azerbaijan. And our lands are affected by the rats and lizards coming from Azerbaijan,” said the spokesperson.

Babayan added that Nagorno-Karabakh has adopted new strategies to build many water channels and hydropower plants on its territory for solving energy-related problems in the coming three years.

“So, we have nothing to hide. Water is a vital product for us. They can supply us with oil or natural gas in return for water if they are interested to, of course,” he said.

The spokesperson believes Azerbaijani will politicize what he called an environmentally and economically friendly proposal. He said Karabakh is always mindful of both its own and the neighbor’s interests, and always keeps international organizations in the know of its willingness for a mutual cooperation.