Armenian leader pins “modest hopes” on talks with Azeri president

Public Television of Armenia, Yerevan
2 Jun 06

[Presenter] Armenian President Robert Kocharyan does not hope that
special changes will happen at the forthcoming meeting in
Bucharest. The Armenian president said today that he pinned modest
hopes on his forthcoming meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliyev.

Kocharyan also said that the framework of issues discussed currently
creates an opportunity to ensure a stable and lasting settlement of
the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict, but there is an impression that
Azerbaijan is in no mood to resolve the conflict peacefully, which is
proved by bellicose statements made in Baku.

[Correspondent] Asked by journalists whether he has expectations from
one more meeting with Aliyev in Bucharest, if we take into account
bellicose statements made by the Azerbaijani president who accuses
Armenia of taking a nonconstructive position, the Armenian president
said at a news conference in [Armenia’s] Vayots Dzor Region that he
pinned modest hopes on the forthcoming meeting.

[Kocharyan] I have modest hopes on the forthcoming meeting because of
bellicose statements and comments that have nothing to do with issues
under discussion. This creates the impression that the opposite side
is in no mood to resolve the conflict seriously.

[Correspondent] The president also noted that statements made by
Azerbaijani officials that the problem should be solved on the basis
of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity are surprising.

[Kocharyan] Since the establishment of the UN, there has not been any
nation that gained independence and then changed its mind and returned
to the state from which it had broken away.

[Correspondent] The Armenian president pointed out that when the UN
was established, it had 51 members, but there were about 70 countries
in the world.

Today the UN has 191 members, but the number of countries in the world
is about 200. The Armenian president believes that this progress
results from national liberation movements, the implementation of the
right to self-determination and the downfall of empires.

[Kocharyan] I do not understand why the Armenians – the Karabakh
people – should make a decision that they do not need independence and
think about returning somewhere. I am surprised why they are thinking
of us in this way.

[Correspondent] Kocharyan also spoke about the Orinats Yerkir
(Law-Governed Country) Party’s withdrawal from the ruling coalition
and the changes that have taken place in the coalition. The president
described as absurd the comments that the authorities have allegedly
sent Orinats Yerkir on a mission to the opposition. We are not so
skilled in politics, he said.

[Passage omitted: Kocharyan spoke about the role of the opposition and
ruling coalition; he said that relations between him and Orinats
Yerkir leader Artur Bagdasaryan worsened because of their different
views on foreign policy; he said that Bagdasaryan tried to offer his
personal approaches to issues that were directly related to Armenia’s
national security and that he disagreed with Bagdasaryan]