OSCE PA NEWLY ELECTED CHAIRMAN EXACTLY SEES FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS IN
DIRECTION OF NAGORNO KARABAKH SETTLEMENT

YEREVAN, JULY 10, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. Swedish deputy Goran
Lenmarker, reporter on the issue of Nagorno Karabakh, was elected new
Chairman of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly during the secret ballot
at the OSCE PA summer session convened on July 3-7 in Brussels. 5
candidates, including Georgian Parliament Speaker Nino Burjanadze,
pretented to the post of the chairman. As Vahan Hovhannisian, head
of the Armenian delegation, RA NA Speaker, who was also included in
the Assembly’s electoral commission, assured at the July 10 press
conference, the elections were held "in accordance with the high
European standards, without stuffing ballot-papers, without switching
off the light and stealing the ballot-box at the end." As a result,
G.Lenmarker succeeded at the second stage. The Armenian delegation had
a short meeting with the latter, during which the further cooperation
prospects were outlined.

In response to journalists’ questions, the speaker said that the newly
appointed Assembly Chairman exactly sees the further developments in
the direction of the Nagorno Karabakh settlement and thinks that,
nevertheless, some work will be done by the end of 2006. According
to Vahan Hovhannisian, in the American, Canadian, Swedish and French
delegations they are also convinced that OSCE Minsk Group American
Co-chair Matthew Bryza with his statements makes an attempt to
"directly notify the societies and to do some spade-work among them
by evading the executive level." "At that, everybody realizes very
well, what side took a step towards concessions and what side declined
this step.

Everybody understands that Armenia shows an extremely pliable position
and Azerbaijan not," the NA Vice-Speaker assured. He also stated
that some countries’ activity in the direction of being involved
in the format of the Minsk Group Co-chairs engaged in the Nagorno
Karabakh settlement is obvious. He also sees some activity in the
issue of moving the discussion of the Nagorno Karabakh problem to
different parliamentary assemblies. As Vahan Hovhannisian assured,
involvement of new countries and new instances can prolong the process
of conflict settlement.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress