Crisis Group official,The NKR [Nagornyy Karabakh Republic] president discuss Karabakh settlement

Artsakh Public TV, Stepanakert
14 May 05

Text of report by Nagornyy Karabakh’s Artsakh Public TV on 14 May

[Presenter over video of meeting] The NKR [Nagornyy Karabakh Republic]
president, Arkadiy Gukasyan, on 14 May received the Caucasus Project
director of the International Crisis Group on conflict prevention
and resolution, Sabine Freizer, and a political analyst of the group,
Levon Zurabyan.

Ms Freizer said that the main goal of the visit to Nagornyy Karabakh
was to get more detailed information about the republic and life there,
to learn the opinion and positions of the NKR public and authorities
on the current stage of the conflict settlement and ways to resolve the
issue. In this connection, she said she wanted to meet representatives
of state structures, political parties and ordinary people.

Based on the results of the visit a report will be prepared, which
will encompass information about processes taking place in Nagornyy
Karabakh and make practical recommendations to international structures
working on a settlement to the conflict, Sabine Freizer said.

For his part, the NKR president underlined the importance of the work
carried out by the group in preventing conflicts and expressed the
hope that the report would make a positive contribution to forming a
positive atmosphere around the peaceful settlement of the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict. President Gukasyan filled the guests in on the
process of democratization and building of a civil society in the
republic, as well as on economic and social reforms in the NKR.

Touching upon the position of the Stepanakert [Xankandi] government
on the principles of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict settlement,
Arkadiy Gukasyan stressed that the resumption of hostilities was
inadmissible and that the conflict should be resolved exclusively by
peaceful means. An atmosphere of confidence has also to be created
between the parties to the conflict, he added. The NKR president put
a special emphasis on the fact that a final and mutually acceptable
solution could be reached only with the full participation of the
NKR in the negotiating process.