IN OPINION OF NKR FOREIGN MINISTRY’S REPRESENTATIVE, MECHANISM ON CONFLICT SETTLEMENT PROPOSED IN ICG REPORT NOT IMPRACTICABLE

Noyan Tapan
Armenians Today
Mar 28 2006

STEPANAKERT, MARCH 28, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. The mechanism
of reaching a peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict proposed
in the report of the International Crisis Group doesn’t seem to
be impracticable as it doesn’t reflect the essense of the Karabakh
conflict and is anchored on pervertion of the pivotal conceptions. This
is said in the interpretation of the report by Irina Beglarian, the
Chief of the NKR Foreign Ministry’s Political Department. According to
her, the positive side of the report is recognition of the necessity of
involving not-recognized countries of the South Caucasus in the wide
integration processes of the EU, as well as the idea of activization
of the interparliamentary dialogue of the sides involved in the South
Caucasian conflicts. Beglarian considers interesting the proposal
of introducing an EU special representative in the South Caucasus in
the negotiations implemented within the framework of the OSCE Minsk
Group. “However, attempts of those forming the report to accuse the
Minsk Group of the monopoly of the peaceful process arise doubts,”
is said in the interpretation. According to the Department Chief,
the Minsk Group’s activity is not the whim of separate diplomates and
countries, but is a work corresponding to the OSCE mandate. “During the
14-years activity the Minsk Group was able to gather some experience
of peace-keeping the result of what was keeping peace in the conflict
region, and at the moment this is the most equivalent format of the
Karabakh conflict settlement. But I want to emphasize that neither
current format nor involvement of European mediators can compensate
absence of the direct side of the conflict, Nagorno Karabakh, in the
negotiations,” the NKR Foreign Ministry’s representative states.