The presidency of the Assembly of Armenian Refugees from Azerbaijan held a round-table discussion on “Artsakh issue: The problems and perspectives of Armenian diplomacy.” Discussions mostly focused on the issue of Armenian refugees, which, the participants said, is often ignored in the negotiation process.
About 660 Armenian refugees fled Azerbaijan between 1988 and1992 as a result of massacres organized by the Azeri leadership. The topic is completely ignored in the negotiation process, while Azerbaijan has made the issue of refugees a serious lever in the talks.
Another issue on the agenda was Turkey’s blockade of Armenia. “The question of return of so-called “occupied territories” is often raised on different international platforms. Why doesn’t anyone ask Turkey why it keeps blockade of Armenia, which poses no threat to its security,” ethnographer Hranush Kharatyan said. According to her, the two issues are serious failures of the Armenian diplomacy.
According to David Shahnazaryan, Armenia has the potential to work not only in PACE but also other international organizations, and it’s the task of the authorities to make an effective use of this potential.
“It’s time to refuse from the defensive policy and take the initiative,” Shahnazaryan said.
Head of the Regional Studies Center Richard Giragosian described the current situation at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border as “undeclared war.” He has no expectations from the upcoming meeting of the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Director of the Caucasus Institute Alexander Iskandaryan sees no threat of resumption of large-scale war, but does not expect anything crucial from diplomatic meetings, either.
According to him, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs are not tasked with solving the Karabakh conflict at this point. “Anyone involved in the settlement of this issue understands that the resolution of the issue is impossible in the foreseeable future.
