Armenia To Reject Karabakh Talks If Azerbaijan Starts ‘From Scratch’ – Minister

Mediamax news agency, Yerevan
14 Apr 04

YEREVAN

Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan announced in Yerevan today
that “if Baku agrees to continue the talks on the Karabakh settlement
on the basis of the agreements reached by President Robert Kocharyan
and (former Azerbaijani) President Heydar Aliyev, Armenia is ready to
take part in the negotiations at the level of heads of state”.

As Mediamax news agency reported, Vardan Oskanyan said this speaking
at a seminar today, which discussed foreign political priorities
of Armenia.

“If Azerbaijan insists on starting everything ‘from scratch’, Armenia
will not take part in the negotiations process and will raise the
issue with the mediators of holding negotiations between Azerbaijan
and the Nagornyy Karabakh authorities,” Vardan Oskanyan said.

The foreign minister said that President Robert Kocharyan’s
participation in the negotiations had been justified as long as
“discussions of Nagornyy Karabakh’s status immediately concerned
Armenia”.

“If the content of the negotiations is changed, this means that the
rules of the game are also changing,” Vardan Oskanyan stressed.

The Armenian foreign minister said that he was leaving for Prague
tomorrow where he would hold his first meeting with Azerbaijani
Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.