ARMENIAN POLITOLOGIST: MEDIATORS’ PRINCIPAL GOAL – TO PREVENT FROM RESUMPTION OF KARABAKH CONFLICT

DeFacto Agency, Armenia
Oct 25 2006

The Karabakh conflict cannot be settled without the Nagorno-Karabakh’s
participation in the settlement process, an independent politologist
Levon Melik-Shahnazaryan stated at a press conference at the Pastark
Club October 25.

According to Levon Melik-Shahnazaryan, sooner or later the
Azeri party will have to sit at the negotiating tale with the
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’s leadership, like in 1993 – 1995. In the
politologist’s opinion, the OSCE Minsk group, Europe and super-powers
are obviously more interested in the conflict’s conservation and
not its solution. "The conflict should not be resumed – that is the
mediators’ first goal", the politologist believes. "The NKR’s status
is of no peculiar interest to the mediators". In his opinion, the
Europe’s economy is not ready to rebuff a new blow: the resumption
of the hostilities in the Karabakh conflict zone will result in rise
of the fuel prices.

While commenting on the idea of the conduct of a repeated referendum
on the determination of the NKR’s status, Levon Melik-Shahnazaryan
noted in case the Armenian party agreed to the proposal it would
unintentionally cast doubts on a referendum held in Karabakh December
10, 1991. In the politologist’s words, the proposal may be acceptable
for the Armenian party only in case it is held on the territory of
the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic without taking into consideration
Azerbaijan’s Constitution. "We all know the answer given by the
Artsakh people", Levon Melik-Shahnazaryan noted.

Answering a question why discussing the options of the mutual
compromises on the Karabakh conflict’s settlement the matter, as
a rule, concerns the liberated territories, the issue of the North
Artsakh being ignored, Levon Melik-Shahnazaryan regretfully mentioned
the community unions’ passiveness.