PETER SEMNEBY: EU BACKS THE RESOLUTION OF THE KARABAKH CONFLICT WITHIN MINSK GROUP FORMAT

ArmRadio – Public Radio, Armenia
Sept 28 2007

"The opportunity to continue the negotiations is very important in
the process of settlement of the Karabakh conflict," EU Special
representative for the South Caucasus Peter Semneby told ArmInfo
correspondent.

The diplomat expressed the opinion that possibly the negotiation
process will get complicated for a certain period of time, but it is
necessary to guarantee progress and not to lose the accentuations
achieved during the ongoing activity of the OSCE Minsk Group
Co-Chairs. "The process must continue only on condition that the
achieved results will be maintained, and I’m sure it will continue,"
Peter Semneby noted.

Speaking about the opportunity to reach progress before the
presidential campaign starts, Semneby refrained from concrete comments
and noted that it’s obvious that progress will be achieved sooner or
later. "However, as a minimal condition, it is necessary to guarantee
that the agreements reached during the negotiation process will be
preserved. It will enable the parties to proceed to the next stage
of negotiations," the diplomat underlined.

Turning to the consideration of the Karabakh issue in the framework
of the UN General Assembly session, Peter Semneby said the EU fully
supports the process of the Karabakh conflict resolution within the
framework of the mediating mission of the OSCE Minsk Group."