Arman Melikyan about NKR conflict settlement and our foreign policy
– Mr. Melikyan, Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian, citing the statements by the OSCE Minsk Group and other international organizations dealing with the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, in his recent interview with the Public Television, stressed that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should be resolved peacefully only through negotiations. In your opinion, to what extent are our and the international community’s calls and Azerbaijan’s militant actions proportionate? Eventually, the negotiation process again led to the war launched by Azerbaijan.
– The reality is not measured by the statements said by this or that person but judging by the official behavior of the state responsible of Armenia, they have difficulties to adequately perceive this truth. Let Mr. Nalbandian and the rest answer now why contrary to the statements made so far at the highest levels in favor for the peaceful negotiation settlement, Azerbaijan launched this four-day war. Let them also explain why despite knowing that Baku officially was guilty in these military initialing actions, no one wanted to chide Ilham Aliyev. I am confident that our responsible do not have the answers to these questions, and the only thing that they might try to do is the hunting of futile, discouraging and our-moral-forces wearing out alien witches while now we must solve totally different problems and first of all, look at ourselves with a questioning glance.
– The foreign minister seems to have opened some diplomatic parentheses noting that now the Kazan document is left on the negotiation table, the rest are in Vienna archive, and this is not so much profitable document for Azerbaijan, therefore this state is constantly provoking and escalating the situation. In your observations, are Azerbaijan’s “convulsions” because of it, and what do you think, under this situation, after so many victims, is it correct to sit around the negotiation table with the available documents or new requirements or new regulatory format is necessary?
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– I can only say one thing, so far no document available of the table has not truly reflected the Armenian side’s or Azerbaijan’s long-term and radical true interests, all of them contain serious prerequisites for preparing the next war. It is necessary to come out of this vicious circle but the political convulsions made irregularly and impromptu by the dictation of the moment will only contribute to the fact that we will further be plunged into the swamp of helpless despair and continuous new casualties-taking border violence and armed conflicts. We have no right to allow us such extravagance.
– The necessity for Nagorno-Karabakh’s involvement in the negotiation process is now more emphasized than ever. Will the emphasis of this requirement not again become a cause for launching hostilities by Azerbaijan? What diplomatic, political and legal steps must be used to restrain Azerbaijan’s this kind of actions? Are our diplomatic, political, and legal representatives’ actions effective? What are our drawbacks?
– I do not want to go into details and I will only say that Azerbaijan was able to shape the current favorable negotiation conditions in nearly two decades and applied big efforts for it, conducted consistent work with international organizations, co-chairs and even the Armenian side. The consequences of being out of the negotiation prove and neutralization of legal-political objectiveness of Artsakh cannot be eliminated just by declaring that the Stepanakert officially should be directly involved in the negotiations. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to conduct a directed and consistent work which will underlie a proper professional level strategic plan. At the moment, our officials are deprived of elementary guidelines used in the political and diplomatic activities, and speaking about the presence of instrumentation necessary to adequately respond to the sharp challenges of our today’s reality is even excessive. Frankly speaking, our missed time for coming out of the created situation is rapidly running out, and if the authorities continue to operate as it did before April 2, then the future of our country will be seriously and perhaps irreversibly endangered.
Hripsime HOVHANNISYAN, “Aravot” daily
