MANN: TIME WORKS AGAINST ALL OF US
By Aghavni Harutyunian

AZG Armenian Daily
28/03/2006

Meanwhile South Caucasus Is Getting Armed

When one tries to compare the statements on Nagorno Karabakh regulation
made in early months of 2006, one will get an impression that the
conflicting sides and the mediators are completely unaware of each
others’ positions and further plans.

It’s interesting that American co-chair to the OSCE Minsk Group Steven
Mann told RFE/RL that the co-chairs consider a peace agreement by
any option a desirable achievement. Mann underscored that reaching
an agreement depends on the sides.

This statement comes after the Istanbul meeting of the Minsk Group
on March 20 that passed without Russian co-chair’s participation. In
addition, Mann stated after the Istanbul meeting: “Time works against
all of us. The sides should come to an agreement in 2006. We need
to complete the important work of this year in order to have some
achievement.”

It sounds as though the agreement signing in 2006 is an
obligation. Perhaps the pretext in the statement of Peter Semneby,
newly appointed EU special representative for the South Caucasus,
as quoted by the RFE/RL, is of the same nature. According to Semneby,
his primary goal is the frozen conflicts that suspend development of
3 South Caucasian republics by ingesting too much political energy
and resources.

“I have a slightly powerful mandate for participating in regulation of
frozen conflicts than my predecessor had. This should signal that the
frozen conflicts are more important in the EU agenda now than before,”
Semneby said. Speaking about Rambouillet meeting the Swede diplomat
underscored that there is still chance to settle the conflict or to
sign an agreement this year.

In fact, we have the statements of European and American diplomats on
one side and the arms race and increasing military budgets in the CIS
countries on the other. This is particularly true for Azerbaijan which
has doubled its military budget to $600 million this year. Georgia
on its part has thrice increased its military budged this year making
it $240 million.

Alongside with its neighbors Armenia’s military budget is only $150
million, 3 percent of the country’s GDP.

This regional arming does not go in line with the European “hopes”
to put an end to the Karabakh conflict in 2006 before the electoral
campaigns in 2007. Against the background of these “hopes” or
compulsion, Azerbaijan’s militant statements contradict the reality.

However, the Armenian and Azeri foreign ministers are going to meet in
foreseeable future to find ways for advancing the regulation process.