According to Masis Mayilyan, instead of interpreting the UN Security Council resolutions with regard to Armenia, Azerbaijan had better meet the obligations mentioned in the resolutions regarding it.
During a meeting of the OSCE Council of Foreign Ministers that took place in Dublin on December 6-7, representatives of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries – Sergey Lavrov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation, Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, and Bernard Cazeneuve, the French Junior Minister for Foreign Affairs, made a joint statement, which read: “We call upon the parties to demonstrate a greater sense of urgency in the peace process and to work with the Co-Chairs to give full and careful consideration to ideas presented by the Co-Chairs during their trip to the region in November.”
Aravot asked Masis Mayilyan, the chairman of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic public council on foreign policy and security and a former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, what new ideas they were talking about, whether the Madrid principles had been revised and there were new or completed proposals on the negotiating table today. “On the one hand, the text of the statement testifies to the fact that the mediators haven’t given up on the Madrid principles and their elements completely. On the other hand, representatives of the Minsk Group co-chair countries called on the parties to consider the ideas presented by the Co-Chairs during their trip to the region recently,” he noted.
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Then our interlocutor added: “It is interesting to know what new proposals the Co-Chairs presented, in order to be able to understand in what direction the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs are going to continue their mission. It is obvious that it is impossible to establish long-lasting peace in the region on the basis of an obsolete approach. The mediators should have the courage to offer a new approach, taking into account the current realities of the international law and the decisions based on precedent, which will impede the possibilities of solving the conflict militarily.”
Elmar Mamedyarov, the Azerbaijani Minister of Foreign Affairs, published an article in The Wall Street Journal the day before the session of the OSCE Council of Foreign Ministers, claiming that the Dublin meeting was a peace opportunity, which should be seized. He reminded about 4 resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council calling for an immediate withdrawal of Armenian forces from the Azerbaijani territory. “The Armenian military withdrawal must be comprehensive, and it needs to take place now. Beyond these two conditions, we are flexible and willing to support any peace process. We will back it up with a real economic development plan for Nagorno-Karabakh, including serious investments,” Mamedyarov wrote and added: “We can resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem only if there is political will on all sides, there is such will in Azerbaijan, and I suggest we achieve progress in Dublin and draft a comprehensive peace agreement within a fixed time frame after which the Minsk Group should agree on a new meeting to be attended by all parties. Dublin is our peace opportunity and I urge our Armenian counterparts to seize it, together with us.”
In response to a question whether Baku was ready to go for resolution in the short run or putting forward its well-known preconditions, it used a tactic of getting desirable concessions from the Armenian side, Aravot’s interlocutor noted that the article published the day before the meeting of the OSCE Council of Foreign Ministers took place in Dublin aimed at showing the “positive” approach and “goodwill” of the Azerbaijani side to the world. “The fact of the matter is that there are definitions in the article unacceptable for the Armenian side accepting and implementing which will lead to losing Artsakh. As for the famous resolutions of the UN Security Council on the Karabakh issue, one must say that those are of consultative nature. Instead of interpreting the resolutions with regard to Armenia, Azerbaijan, being a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, had better meet the obligations in the above-mentioned resolutions regarding it,” M. Mayilyan said.
A set of high-ranking officials made statements on the Karabakh conflict settlement within the framework of the 19th session of the Council of the OSCE Foreign Ministers. Sergey Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister, stated: “Russia, along with the other OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries, will continue to support harmonizing the positions of the parties to the Karabakh conflict.” Catherine Ashton, the head of the EU diplomacy, in her turn, stated that the conflicts that existed between the OSCE member states prevented the region’s economic development. Ashton added that the EU showed necessary support for resolving those problems. Eamon Gilmore, the current Chair of the OSCE and the Irish minister for
Foreign Affairs and Trade, noted: “The escalation of confrontation on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border since April testifies to the need for a quick settlement to the Karabakh conflict.”
Aravot asked Masis Mayilyan whether one could expect any progress in the Karabakh conflict settlement after the 2013 presidential election, after the election processes, whether these were standard statements again, which aimed at easing possible tension on the contact line and escalation in hostilities. In our interlocutor’s opinion, after election processes, the mediators and the three conflicting parties will take new measures to settle the conflict. “Success can be achieved, if the mediators offer a realistic approach, and the parties are ready to sign a peace agreement. At this stage, it is important for the mediators to maintain the fragile peace and work on easing tensions between the parties. Along with the negotiating process, Yerevan and Stepanakert should work on the international recognition of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic supported by the Diaspora. The recognition will offer new opportunities of strengthening the security of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia, will contribute to regional stability, which is in the interest of not only the Armenian side, but also different power centers,” the former Deputy Foreign Minister of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic stated.
EMMA GABRIELYAN
