Leyla Aliyeva: Referendum in Karabakh Pregnant with Big Problems for Baku

PanARMENIAN.Net
02.08.2006 14:55 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Azerbaijan has serious ground to press for a national
referendum, Azeri political scientist Leyla Aliyeva said. According
to her if legal conditions are created for conduction of a referendum
in Karabakh, the items of the referendum should exclude controversy
between the principle of territorial integrity and the right to
self-determination. "The items of the referendum should refer to
various levels of autonomy. It’s another matter, who will determine
these items. Anyway, conduction of the referendum in Karabakh only
is pregnant with big problems for Baku," she said. "The only logic
used by the Co-chairs is that Baku should hold immediate talks with
Karabakh. This standpoint is supported by all the international
mediating missions. Anyway, Karabakh does take part in the talks but
not as a side in conflict but as a concerned party," she remarked.

Aliyeva said some progress has been achieved. "The optimist of
the mediators may be explained by this fact. Compromise on a
stepwise plan was achieved. The sides also agreed that the talks
on Nagorno Karabakh’s status will be delayed for 10 years. I think
it’s an advance," she said. At the same time the Azeri political
scientist said that "in order not to lose this achievement the
mediators apply cautious wordings. "These wordings base on the
agreements achieved. They leave open the issue of the referendum and
territorial integrity, which in our case conflict with in other. If
earlier representatives of some foreign states used to say that the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict should be resolved within the framework
of territorial integrity, so now such statements can be heard very
rarely. The wording on the referendum does not answer the question
what’s more important self-determination or territorial integrity,"
Aliyeva considers, reported Realazer.com.