Deputy Director of Caucasus Institute Sergey Minasyan believes that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s visit has nothing to do with it all the interpretations, especially handing Karabakh, which takes place in these days. Mr. Minasyan considers such publications speculation. In an interview with Aravot.am, in response to allegations about handing over Karabakh, Mr. Minasyan said in irony, “Karabakh has last been handed over probably in the early 1980s, when we still did not fully have Karabakh. Such conversations are taking place after every similar meeting. Lavrov’s visit has nothing to do with the Karabakh conflict. Simply, there are mass media that considering that the Karabakh issue is one of the most sensitive ones speculate on it. Lavrov’s visit was more connected to the Middle East discussions and the Syrian crisis.
Eventually, everyone understands that Armenia despite its scanty resources and funds is a more interested country in the Syrian concept. There is an Armenian-Turkish community, there are Armenian squads that are fighting including in the government troops. On the other hand, the fact that Russia’s and Turkey’s relations are in the worst level after the Cold War, speaking about the fact that Russia, I do not know for what reason, wants to do so that Armenians hand over Karabakh, Armenia weakens, and in this context, people are either implementing a political order or continue to remain in delusion. I do not think that any developments, positive or negative, can result in handing Karabakh.”
Mr. Minasyan explained that the Russian “Kommersant” has also taken an explanation from him on this issue, and citing four or five anonymous sources, has made an analysis on handing over Karabakh, which is far from reality. “Maybe the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Information Department was trying to say that Lavrov’s visit has been successful but it turned out to be a weird material.” To our observation that there are so many unexpected developments in the world, for example, the shameful report accepted by the PACE, so what are the guarantees that one day we will deal with a similar situation, Mr. Minasyan replied, “The existing military-political balance, the Minsk Group co-chairs’ posture, such a thing is impossible.
Everyone knows well that in the event that neither side is ready for serious concessions, by influencing on someone, they will have a worse situation than they have at this point. By changing these territories in any way will not help to resolve the conflict, first of all, it’s not possible, why should Armenians decide 25 years later that today they should go for one-sided concessions.” Back to the PACE report, Mr. Minasyan said, “First of all, this report has not been accepted, then numerous resolutions have been adopted in the UN, which demand the withdrawal of Armenian troops from Karabakh. Nothing has been changed, in the 1990s, there were even specific deadlines for it. So, I do not see any preconditions that there might such developments.”
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To our curiosity of whether the RA-EU new-level talks this time will produce useful results for Armenia, and whether Russia will allow it, Mr. Minasyan replied, “If no force major happens, then Russia should be interested too, because Armenia being one of the Council of Europe member states, signing a partnership with the EU in a new format, can be a good example for Russia-EU relations. Russia should be more interested in this partnership. Anyway, currently I do not see any nervousness by Russia in that respect.”
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
