TREND News Agency, Azerbaijan
April 5 2008

Azerbaijan Considers Various Variants of Expanding Format of OSCE
Minsk Group: Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to Russia
05.04.08 12:22

Russia, Moscow, 5 April /corr. TrendNews R.Agayev / Azerbaijan
considers various variants of expanding the authorities of the OSCE
Minsk Group and more active participation of the Minsk Group
member-countries, who are not co-chairmen (Italy, Finland, Turkey,
Belarus), in the process. Azerbaijan and Armenia are members of the
Minsk Group as well. Therefore, the talks here should take place in a
wider format and with more collectively made decisions, Azerbaijan’s
Ambassador to Russia, Polad Bulbuloglu, said to a press-conference in
Moscow.

The Ambassador said that nobody denies that over the recent period,
the Minsk Group co-chairmen have been carrying out large works, they
make maximum efforts, but the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not simple
problem and it is difficult to resolve it at full speed or with some
recommendations because it affects the interests of two peoples, two
countries. Bulbuloglu said that exactly due to it, such
misunderstandings as voting of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairman
countries (the USA, France and Russia) against the Resolution
submitted by Azerbaijan to the UN General Assembly take place.

According to him, Azerbaijan considers adoption of the Resolution its
diplomatic victory because Azerbaijan’s position was supported by 40
countries. `This Resolution is not directed against other countries.
It supports the activity of the Minsk Group and describes
Azerbaijan’s position. Let somebody do not like the Resolution,
somebody vote against it, but it was very important to gain such a
Resolution. The Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict may be
settled only within Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity being
supported by the Resolution of the UN General Assembly,’ Bulbuloglu
said.

Speaking of the adoption of the Resolution by the UN General Assembly
and the position of the world countries during the voting, the
Ambassador said that during the voting, Azerbaijan was supported not
only by the GUAM member-countries, but also the Organization of the
Islamic Conference (OIC) participating countries, as well as other
countries. Bulbuloglu noted that adopting the Resolution was very
important for Azerbaijan. He is surprised that big countries and OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairman countries sharply protested against the
document.

In addition, the Ambassador stated that there is no necessity to
speak about it at a personal level in Russia because the country
clearly highlighted its position in relevant documents. `Russia has
made official statements supporting Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity within the Minsk Group and at the bilateral level.
Therefore, nobody should have doubts about Russia’s position. Russia
protested against the Resolution, saying that the Resolution is
irrelevant and may break off the negotiations process,’ the diplomat
added.

The Ambassador said that Russia, the USA and France, as mediators,
had to abstain voting. `It was unpleasant for Azerbaijan and Azeri
people to hear that the co-chairman countries of the Minsk Group,
which urges to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, voted against
the Resolution. The mediators should be neutral. Voting against the
Resolution, they complicated their future activity,’ Bulbuloglu said.