VARTAN OSKANIAN: COMMON VERGES OF CONSENT STARTED TO COME IN SIGHT DURING BRUSSELS MEETING

Noyan Tapan News Agency, Armenia
Nov 15 2006

BRUSSELS, NOVEMBER 15, NOYAN TAPAN. In the words of Armenian Foreign
Minister Vartan Oskanian, "there were moderate expectations" from the
Brussels meeting with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadiarov.

"I would not say that even if these moderate expectations were
fulfilled completely, nevertheless, I can say that a little progress
was registered," the Armenian Foreign Minister said in his interview
to radio Liberty after the November 14 meeting.

In his words, the negotiations should be continued, as common verges
of consent seemed to come in sight during this meeting around proposals
and thoughts discussed at the Moscow and Paris meetings. "I cannot say
that this was a complete consent, but some verges started to show up."

Vartan Oskanian considered it interesting that the OSCE Minsk Group
Co-chairmen "after hearing all this informed us that they have made
a decision to propose the Presidents to have a meeting during the CIS
summit at the end of this month." "Maybe they have seen some positive
moments in our today’s discussions and proceeding from this, made a
decision to invite the Presidents to such a meeting," V.Oskanian said.

In the Foreign Minister’s words, the Presidents will decide whether
to accept the invitation to this meeting or not. "That’s why the
Co-chairmen will visit the region soon, during the coming week:
they will be in Yerevan on November 21," he said.

The Minister assured that expression of people’s will in Nagorno
Karabakh remains the principle of negotiations for Armenia. "This
is one of the pivotal issues and indeed this is a necessity for the
Armenian side," V.Oskanian said. "Be it through a referendum or in
another way, the self-determination right of the Nagorno Karabakh
people should be stipulated by this document that should serve as a
means of solution. So, this issue remains on the agenda."

In response to the question, was any compromise or softening
noticeable in Azerbaijan’s position during the meeting or at the
negotiations preceding it, the Minister said: "I can say the following:
the atmosphere was rather positive, it was a constructive meeting,
rather a serious discussion developed, thoughts were voiced."

"I cannot say that there are any concrete agreements, but in the
"footnote" of the discussions it was felt that there was some
similarity of approaches," Vartan Oskanian said. "You can consider
this a flexible approach or a compromise, I do not want to qualify
this in any way, I can only register that many common verges of
consent seemed to have come in sight during this meeting."

Estimating the Armenian Action Plan signed the same day within the
framework of the European Union New Neighborhood Policy, the Minister
emphasized that "by adopting this document Armenia established new
relations from qualitative point of view with the European Union."

"This opens serious prospects for us to integrate into these structures
for even more, to deepen our relations," Vartan Oskanian said. "This
program has a duration of five years, a serious financial support,
is target and indeed, if it is implemented rightly, Armenia can make
a great use of it."

"I have repeatedly said that if we are able to completely fulfil the
opportunities given by this program, in five years Armenia can be
a different state in political and economic respect," the Minister
said and emphasized that indeed we should pursue its fulfilment.

Touching upon the forthcoming parliamentary and presidential elections
in Armenia, Vartan Oskanian said: "Today one of the pivotal issues
raised during the Armenia-European Union Cooperation Council meeting
is also the coming elections. At any bilateral meeting I have had
during the recent months one of the pivotal issues on the agenda was
our forthcoming elections. Our elections are so much spoken about
that indeed this does not permit us to be mistaken this time."

In the Armenian Foreign Minister’s words, attention, interest in the
elections is too big: "And the losses we can have are also so big
that indeed we should seriously think to do so with the whole nation,
all political forces as to be able to indeed hold different elections
from the qualitative point of view."

"Armenia’s further development, stipulation of our democratic
institutions, implementation of programs greatly and considerably
depend on the forthcoming two elections in Armenia, parliamentary and
presidential," the head of the Armenian foreign political department
concluded.