TERRY DAVIS: PEOPLE IN NAGORNO KARABAKH WILL TRY TO USE THE SITUATION IN KOSOVO AS A PRECEDENT
Tatul Hakobyan Strasbourg

ArmRadio.am
26.06.2007 14:27

In response to the request of Radiolur correspondent in Strasbourg to
comment on the recent parliamentary elections in Armenia, which the
European institutions assessed as corresponding at large to European
standards, Council of Europe’s Secretary General Terry Davis said that
that elections was a step forward in comparison to the previous ones,
but from the other hand, he stressed that it is always possible to
hold better elections.

Yesterday René van der Linden, the President of the Parliamentary
Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), commenting on the
parliamentary elections in Armenia said: "I am very happy that Armenian
parliamentary elections met the criteria, were free and fair. And I
hope it will be an encouragement for the Nagorno Karabakh conflict
final solution. It is always difficult before elections, best time
is after elections. The results of the Armenian elections must be
seen as an encouragement for the Nagorno Karabakh conflict solution."

How can the elections push forward the negotiation process, which,
according to observers, is in deep deadlock? The Secretary General
reminded that the process is under the OSCE Minsk Group framework.

"It must be helpful to the Minsk Group to have elections behind not
in front of, and also it is difficult for a government to take a
decision before the elections. Armenian parliamentary elections must
be a positive contribution to the solution," Davis added.

Commenting on the coming presidential elections in Nagorno Karabakh,
Mr. Davis said. "Nagorno Karabakh is not recognized internationally,
it is not regarded as a separate recognized state and the so-called
elections will not affect."

"I will be surprised if the people of Nagorno Karabakh will not try
to use the decision about Kosovo. People in Nagorno Karabakh will try
to use the situation in Kosovo as a precedent, I think they will be
disappointed," stressed the Secretary General in response to Radiolur’s
next question asking how the Kosovo case will impact Nagorno Karabakh.

Mr. Davis labelled the governments of all four unrecognized republics
– Nagorno Karabakh, Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transniestria –
as separatist regimes.

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