Russian expert: Azerbaijan must emphasize that it does not attack Armenia, but restores constitutional order

What are your comments on the fact that the Almaty meeting between Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers was fruitless? What will happen next?

This will be followed by a stalemate. The parties will either reach a peace or will continue to play until one of the parties surrenders. The Almaty meeting clearly showed that today the OSCE Minsk Group is not able to influence settlement of the conflict. Armenia represented by Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian once again made it clear in Kazakhstan that it will not make any compromise or even withdraw from unchallenged Azerbaijani territories around Nagorno-Karabakh. In this situation, they start to cheat and say that allegedly Nagorno-Karabakh "army" occupied these lands although this is not true. In Armenia everybody understands the situation and mourn for those draftees who have recently died in a clash on the frontline and who were the natives of Armenia, not Karabakh. I think the settlement process should involve new players and news powers.

Whom do you mean exactly?

With all due respect to our Kazakh friends, who head the OSCE, mandate of this organization is clearly not enough to move the conflict resolution forward. I think this requires new UN resolution, a fresh resolution by the Security Council and other authoritative international organizations. Armenia should understand that their position when they seem to intend to solve the conflict, participate in the negotiation process but take their original stance at a decisive moment is fundamentally wrong. Even the Armenian opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian called position of the Armenia authorities on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict destructive and senseless. But the Armenian authorities do not understand this or unwilling to understand for some reason. The so-called representatives of the Karabakh elite think that if they make even one step towards liberating Azerbaijani lands, it would mean their political defeat, and possibly end of their political career.

At the end of the year Kazakhstan will host summit of the OSCE member states’ leaders. I believe that Azerbaijan should squarely put the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh during this summit. Azerbaijan must reiterate its position and note that Baku agrees with the updated version of the Madrid principles proposed by the mediators, and is ready to begin to resolve the conflict. At the same time make it clear that Armenia does not make any compromises. Let the OSCE members address the Armenian leadership and call it to pursue a constructive policy, threatening with certain sanctions if necessary.
 
 In your opinion, is military solution to the conflict realistic today?
 
I think its real. However, before it starts fighting to liberate its occupied territories, Azerbaijan should inform the world's major powers and world community of its intention. Baku is not obliged to ask permission to do it. Azerbaijan simply once again must emphasize that it does not attack Armenia, but restores constitutional order on its lands. Armenia has its own borders and no one is going to breach them. Azerbaijan only wants justice and has this legal right to this. However, a war is not desirable in any case. It does not bring anything good to countries whatever its outcome. And I'm sure that Baku, acting wisely and well-heeled in diplomacy, knows that it might give a brief pause to the opposite side to think everything over so that to go back to the negotiating table after a certain time.


/Day.Az/