"The progress is not happening on the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict. Something is missing."

“Turkey could play an important role in the decades-long conflict in the disputed area of Nagorno-Karabakh”, said OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier in his interview with “Today’s Zaman” newspaper.

Calling Turkey as an important player of the region, Zannier said that Ankara had a political contribution to offer. Touching on the negotiations held under the auspices of the OSCE, he said that the progress was not happening: “I am stating a fact – the progress is not happening. Something is missing”.

Zannier said that Turkey’s involvement in Karabakh negotiations need not be an official one: “I am not talking about a formal role in the negotiations, but in real terms. Turkey is bordering both countries involved in the conflict. Turkey needs to create conditions to promote dialogue on both sides”.

Touching on the OSCE’s efforts for settlement of Karabakh conflict, Zannier said that he didn’t accept some sounded critics. According to him, the callings to nad over the settlement issues of Nagorno Karabakh and other conflicts to the other organizations would not settle the conflicts: “The problem is the substance of the issue. We are trying to create the necessary conditions in the meantime. We are trying to manage the situation on the ground, but the situation becomes problematic in security term”.

OSCE official said that if we cannot line up all of the conditions and solve the conflict, then the next best thing we can do is to manage the problem so it does not grow worse.


/APA/