One of the most prestigious publications in the political and diplomatic world, the “Politique Internationale” Journal, printed in Paris, published an article by Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.
In an extended article, entitled “Nagorno-Karabakh: Is a Solution Visible?” Edward Nalbandian thoroughly presents the roots, the settlement process, legal aspects and possible ways of the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.
Edward Nalbandian thoroughly represents the efforts, exerted since the early 1990s towards the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, the stages of the negotiation process, proposals presented by the OSCE Minsk Group and recent developments.
“Azerbaijan rejected all versions of the Basic Principles of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement proposed by the Co-Chairs of the Minsk Group, including the latest proposals submitted at theSaint-Petersburg (June 2010), Astrakhan (October 2010), Sochi (March 2011) and Kazan (June 2011) summits. Azerbaijan rejected all the proposals, proposed by the Co-Chairs. Not only did it attempt to change the essence of the negotiating process, but also to distort the nature of the conflict within various international bodies, not hesitating to mislead the international community by presenting the consequences of the conflict as its causes”, writes Edward Nalbandian.
Attaching importance to the implementation of confidence-building measures, proposed by the Co-Chairs, Foreign Minister stresses, “The Co-Chairs proposed a number of Confidence and Security-Building Measures (CSBM) — consolidation of the cease-fire, withdrawal of snipers from the line of contact, creation of a mechanism to investigate incidents and violations of the cease-fire agreement. These proposals were endorsed by a number of major international organizations, as well as the UN Secretary General. They were equally welcomed by Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. But all of them were rejected by Baku.”
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia touches upon the policy of hatred against Armenians, propagated on the highest level and its dangerous consequences, “In Azerbaijan, journalists, activists and the intelligentsia are all persecuted as “Armenian spies” and “enemies of the nation”, just because they are advocating peace and reconciliation. The writer Akram Aylisli was ostracized for publishing a novel, where he talks about the pogroms against Armenians in Baku and Sumgait. His books were publicly burned and the writer had to leave the country because of threats on his life.”
The Foreign Minister highlights, that many international organizations warned about the flagrant cases of racism, intolerance and violations of human rights in Azerbaijan and the policy of hatred against Armenians. In response, Baku merely organizes fake conferences on tolerance and freedom, in an attempt to impose its own distorted perception of human rights on others.
Under the article sub-section, entitled “Azerbaijan, a Threat to Regional Security”, Minister Nalbandian elaborates, “For the last twenty years, Azerbaijan has done everything in its power to undermine the cease-fire agreements. Military actions along the line of contact and on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border have resulted in significant loss of life and greatly raised tensions on the ground. All the statements and decisions by Baku’s authorities prove that Azerbaijan has become a serious threat to security and stability in the South Caucasus. This country has lost its sense of reality and is doing its utmost to undermine the peace talks. That is why, despite the intensive efforts of the three Co-Chair countries during the last six years (twenty summits, several dozen ministerial-level meetings, visits by the three Co-Chairs to the region), it has not been possible to achieve a breakthrough in negotiations. In fact, Baku is not interested in anything but its own advantage.”
Presenting the vision of Armenia on the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement, Edward Nalbandian writes, “We continue to believe that the principles and elements outlined in the statements of the heads of the Co-Chair countries over the last six years can be the foundations for reaching a fair and lasting settlement of the conflict.
We absolutely agree that peoples should be prepared for peace, not war. Unfortunately, until now the Azerbaijani leadership is doing just the opposite.
We fully agree with the heads of the Co-Chair countries that the use of force will not resolve the conflict, and that only a negotiated settlement can lead to stability and peace, which will open new opportunities for regional cooperation and development. The sooner the Azerbaijani leadership understands this reality, the faster the conflict can be settled.”
The article by Minister Nalbandian in English and French came out also as a separate brochure – an annex to Politique Internationale Journal.
