On February 15, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs visit to the regions launched. American co-chair James Warlick recently mentioned in his Twitter microblog that “they expect serious talks with the Azerbaijani president and other officials” towards initiating steps aimed at peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict. On February 16, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev received the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, as well as Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk in Baku. Prior to the meeting, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov jointly with Iranian Foreign Minister announced at the joint press conference that it is necessary to start working on the settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. In his words, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs already realize that it is time to start working for the great consent. Azerbaijani Foreign Minister, prior to meeting with the co-chairs, said that there should be no Armenian troops in Lachin and Kelbajar. “We need to start serious talks on a peace agreement in the region.” Noteworthy, Mammadyarov’s following idea in the abovementioned conference, “the co-chairs should start working on a peace agreement based on the six-article Madrid principles.” Baku seeks to show the Madrid principles frozen long ago, which were pushed out of the negotiation table in the result of the Baku provocative and adventurous politics, can again become a subject for talks. But Azerbaijan speaks again of a “peace agreement”, which is impossible until the consent of the fundamental principles. Herewith, we can conclude that the mediators were successful to compel Aliyev to return to the “negotiation format”. Apparently, some time later, it will be possible to think about organizing a meeting at the presidential level.
On February 17, the mediators were in Yerevan. During the meeting with Edward Nalbandian, the Foreign Minister called the co-chairs’ attention to the fact that after the statement of the co-chairs dated January 27 and after the statements of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office and the three co-chairs dated February, Baku displaying an open contempt has continued flagrant violations of the ceasefire, provocations and disallowed rhetoric pointed out by the three co-chairs. “Referring to Baku’s statements about the willingness to undertake the development of a peace treaty, the Armenian Foreign Minister stressed that “in reality the Azerbaijani leadership pursues the aim of frustrating the results of the negotiations on the Basic Principles of settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Baku tries to use the Karabakh conflict, which remains unsolved at the fault of Azerbaijan, to justify the cruel human rights violations inside the country and the persecution of opposition activists,” reads the Foreign Ministry’s press release. “When we reach agreement on the basic principles, and when Nagorno-Karabakh approves it, it will be possible to start talks between Azerbaijan, Artsakh and Armenia to work out a comprehensive peace treaty,” said the Minister. After the meeting with the Armenian Foreign Minister, the US Co-Chair James Warlick in Yerevan, in response to the question of “Liberty” about what the new proposal the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs have brought to the sides in conflict, said, “Nothing, this is just a chance to talk.” The co-chairs in Yerevan presented Serzh Sargsyan the impressions of their meetings in Baku, discussed their concerns regarding the current stage of the peace process and issues pertaining to further steps. At the meeting, Serzh Sargsyan welcomed the statement issued by the OSCE Minsk Co-Chairs in Krakow on 27 January 2015. According to the President, it clearly differed from the previous statements in calling on Azerbaijan to observe its commitments to a peaceful resolution of the conflict.” It is noteworthy that the visit of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs to the region coincided with the visit of US Assistant Secretary of State. Prior to the visit to Baku, US State Department’s press release noted that the topics included in Nuland’s agenda under negotiation cover trade, investments, security, combating terrorism, democracy and civil society, as well as a reference to Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The key agenda issue for Nuland’s visit is the Azerbaijani-American quite tense relations.
Official Baku almost never misses the chance to criticize Washington’s policy against Azerbaijan, it even accuses the US of preparing colored revolution in Azerbaijan and destabilizing the situation. “We are very concerned about the situation in the contact line during the last six months. Our message to Armenia and Azerbaijan is that they should stop creating tension and sit around the negotiation table,” announced US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland in Baku, according to the APA news agency release, emphasizing, “We want you to support the processes implemented under the OSCE Minsk Group.”
According to Azerbaijani agencies, Nuland has said that Armenia as a humanitarian gesture should return the Azerbaijani prisoners Shahbaz Guliyev and Dilham Askerov. “Tomorrow, I am going to say this in Armenia.” Note that in June 29,2014, the citizens of Azerbaijan Shahbaz Guliyev and Dilham Askerov, as well as the third killed member Hasan Hasanov, armed, had illegally crossed the NKR state border and penetrated into Shahumyan regional area of Armenia for the purpose of intelligence operations. These persons by a special mission had gathered information and conducted espionage activities. On July 4, by the use of a weapon, they had kidnapped a minor citizen of Nagorno-Karabakh Smbat Tsakanyan, whose body was found with gunshot wounds on July 15. Last year, on December 29, the Court of First Instance of General Jurisdiction of Nagorno-Karabakh sentenced Askerov to life imprisonment for crossing the Nagorno-Karabakh state border without proper authorization, for carrying illegal firearms and ammunition, for outright kidnapping of the person and for murder.
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In January, during the press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, an Azerbaijani journalist was interested to learn from the Russian Foreign Minister about the fate of Askerov, stating that he is a citizen of the Russian Federation and why Russia does not make any statement regarding release of its citizen. In response, Lavrov said that since he was arrested by the Armenian side, and therefore, they will discuss the issue with the Armenian side. “Like you said, he was detained by the Armenian side. In that case, we will discuss this issue with them. We have not a big number of citizens who are detained in different countries of the world. And the Russian side shows interest in their fate.” While, months ago, Russian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Vladimir Dorokhin, in his letter to Vice- Speaker of the Milli Majlis Bahar Muradova, stated that there are no citizens of the Russian Federation among the Azerbaijani captives by the Armenian side. Official Stepanakert’s response on this theme is unequivocal. The issue of Azerbaijani diversionist Dilham Askerov’s extradition convicted to life imprisonment is not subject to debate, repeatedly emphasized the NKR President’s Spokesman David Babayan.
Emma GABRIELYAN
