All negotiations outside the OSCE Minsk Group will complicate Armenia’s situation
Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi has no leverage to influence the processes of the South Caucasus. This is the statement of the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, regarding Pelosi’s visit to Yerevan. “I am sure that her visit caused concern in many places. It is not worth exaggerating the topic,” the Turkish president added. According to him, “Turkey continues certain preparations and we will soon take appropriate steps. At the moment, we are discussing the issue of participating in the meeting of the European Political Community to be held in Prague. If we decide to go to the Czech Republic, Pashinyan will probably be there as well. The Armenian side previously expressed the idea of a meeting on this platform. Perhaps we will have the opportunity to discuss all these issues there,” Erdogan said.
It should be noted that on October 6, the summit of the European Political Community will take place in Prague. Official Yerevan did not rule out the possibility of a meeting with the Prime Minister of Armenia and the President of Turkey in Prague, at the same time stressing that such a meeting is not confirmed at the moment.
In fact, the President of Turkey said that they are preparing certain steps, but which, of course, they should discuss, or rather, agree with the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev. What happens? The current authorities of Armenia announce to the world that Azerbaijan should leave the sovereign territory of Armenia, they admit that in this way Azerbaijan exerts pressure in order to get the solution it imagines from Armenia, they said that they are forcing the operation of the “Zangezur Corridor”, but official Yerevan is ready to negotiate with both Baku and Ankara in the conditions of its own demand. And Ankara and Baku do not forget to constantly remind Armenia what they expect from Yerevan. Armenia should sign the peace treaty proposed by Azerbaijan, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the other day while speaking in Los Angeles.
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“For sustainable peace and stability in the South Caucasus, the comprehensive peace agreement proposed by Azerbaijan should be signed by Armenia and Azerbaijan as soon as possible. We support this process,” he said, adding that “Armenia needs peace.” At the same time, Baku and Ankara continue joint defense cooperation. The defense ministers of Azerbaijan and Turkey had a telephone conversation the other day. Zakir Hasanov and Hulusi Akar “reported” the situation on the border with Armenia, as well as the military-technical cooperation between Baku and Ankara. Official Yerevan announces that thanks to the involvement of the international community, a ceasefire agreement was reached after the September military operations on the Armenian border.
Now the relative calm, Baku and Ankara will use to drag Armenia into the field of satisfying their demands. And, naturally, in this case, according to Aliyev and Erdogan, the possible continuation of the activities of the OSCE Minsk Group should be excluded. It remains to be understood: if the Armenian authorities demand an adequate response from the international community to Azerbaijan’s encroachments against the sovereign territory of Armenia, why do they agree to negotiate with them under the conditions dictated by Turkey and Azerbaijan, if Aliyev did not fulfill the request of the Armenian authorities and the Azerbaijani units did not withdraw from the sovereign territory of Armenia? Isn’t it clear that precisely on this principle they expect to receive from Armenia what they haven’t received yet: “if you refuse, we will take it by force, and you will come quietly and negotiate…”?
Emma GABRIELYAN
