“The West Tells Azerbaijan That It Lost Karabakh In War and Should Abandon That Territory”

Azg/arm
11 March 05

Erdogan Refuses to Negotiate on Opening Borders with Armenia

“The West tells Azerbaijan that it lost Karabakh in the war and
should abandon this territory for the sake of peace and prosperity
and work on the process of integrating to NATO and EU. Such talks
only make the positions of the nationalists stricter. They think that
the oil and gas incomes will help them return the territories by
military force,” Mrs. Zeyno Baran, Head of Nixon Center of
International Security and Energetic Programs, said.

According to Mediamax, she said this during the hearings of “The
Future of Democracy in the Black Sea Region” at the External
Relations Committee of the US Senate, on March 8. Other US officials
also held speeches on the US policy in the region, on Russiaâ~@~Ys
role in the conflict settlement, the progress of democracy.

Zeyno Baran said that Armenia and Azerbaijan are sure that the time
is on their side. “Armenia thinks that the time is on its side for
achieving de jure ratification of Karabakh separation from
Azerbaijan. They think that Azerbaijan will not run the risk of
beginning the war, realizing that the oil and gas carriers may be
attacked and cause the destruction of the economy,” Baran said.

Baran believes that “the US should get engaged into the Karabakh
conflict settlement at the highest level, to change the political and
economic conditions and the calculations of both sides.” She reminded
that in 2002 presidents Bush and Putin made a statement on the
importance of settlement of the frozen conflicts in Karabakh and
Abkhazia,” but “no further steps were taken.”

“They left the Nagorno Karabakh process to the OSCE Minsk group that
canâ~@~Yt secure settlement, as the issue requires discussions at the
highest levels. Notwithstanding the positive factor of continuing the
dialogue between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the inability to achieve the
settlement disappoints the people and affects the authority of the
OSCE,” Baran added.

“Besides, continuing the discussions at the level of Bush and Putin,
in order to settle the Karabakh conflict, democratic progress is also
needed in Armenia and Azerbaijan, so that the governments became
legitimate for their people. This is needed to contribute to the
final settlement. The US should call on the leaders of both countries
to accept the democratic processes as an important precondition for
maintaining regional security and stability,” Baran emphasized.

John Tefft, Coordinator for US Assistance to Europe and Eurasia, said
that “There are essential distinctions between the positions of
Armenia and Azerbaijan concerning Nagorno Karabakh but Presidents
Kocharian and Aliyev are for the peaceful settlement of the
conflict.” “We support the efforts of the OSCE and are encouraged
with the course of the last yearâ~@~Ys negotiations,” Tefft said.

Itâ~@~Ys worth reminding that on February 19, John Evans, US
Ambassador to Armenia, said during the meeting with American
Armenians that notwithstanding the US policy directed to the
territorial integrity of the states, “Everybody realizes that
Karabakh canâ~@~Yt be given back to Azerbaijan, as that would be a
disastrous step.”

On March 4, Dmitry Rupel, OSCE chairman, foreign minister of
Slovenia, called Nagorno Karabakh “a controversial territory.”
Holding a speech in New York at the sitting of the UN security
Council, Rupel said that “The OSCE tries to settle the conflicts in
Moldova, Georgia and in the controversial territory of Nagorno
Karabakh, that were considered frozen once, but began “melting”
recently.”

Zeyno Baran said during the hearings that “The strength of Armenian
Diaspora limits US ability to encourage democratic change in this
country.”

“The US merely canâ~@~Yt exert the same pressure on President
Kocharian, as they did on Leonid Kuchma in Ukraine. One canâ~@~Yt
even imagine that Washington threatens the high ranked
representatives of the Armenian government to forbid them enter the
territory of the US in case of violating the elections,” Baran said.

Bruce Jackson, head of Transitional Democracy Programs, stated in his
speech that the US should discuss the issues concerning the Armenian
Genocide of 1915 with Turkey. “The fact that at the mention of the
genocide committed against the Armenians by the authorities of the
Ottoman Empire in the beginning of the last century arouse the
indignation of Turkish officials doesnâ~@~Yt mean that historical
issues shouldnâ~@~Yt be discussed between democratic allies,” Jackson
said.

He added that Erdogan, Turkish Prime Minister, refused to negotiate
with Armenia over opening the border, creating an obstacle for the
peaceful negotiations of Nagorno Karabakh conflict.”

On her turn, Zeyno Baran said that there have been recessions and
rises in the USâ~@~STurkish relations before, but “Todayâ~@~Ys level
of anti-American moods in Turkey is unprecedented. The recent BBC
research testified that 82% of the Turks treats negatively the policy
of Bush administration, considering America one of the biggest
threats against peace.”

Baran stated that “taking into account the opinion spread in Turkey
that the US campaigning against Turkey, the adoption of “The Armenian
Formula” by the US Congress can have disastrous consequences.” “Such
a formula will fan the fires of antiâ~@~SAmerican moods that
increases in Turkey and will have negative impact on Armenian-Turkish
reconciliation,” Baran thinks.

According to Georgian Internet web site, John Tefft said
that Russia supports the separatist movements in Moldova and Georgia.
On his turn Bruce Jackson motioned that Transdnestria, Abkhazia and
Soot Ossetia became hotbeds for weapon, drugs, women and children
trafficking. Vladimir Sokor said that Russia wants to keep unsolved
the conflicts in the CIS territory “to exert pressure over Georgia,
Azerbaijan, Armenia and Moldova and hinder their Euro-Atlantic
integration.”

By Tatoul Hakobian

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