EurasiaNet, NY
May 2 2008

ARMENIA: TIME FOR A CHANGE ON KARABAKH?
Gayane Abrahamyan 5/02/08

Amid calls from President Serzh Sarkisian for a more "pro-active"
policy, Armenia’s parliament has adopted a statement that some
observers say toughens the country’s position on the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.

The statement, adopted on April 29, calls for Armenian President Serzh
Sarkisian and Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian to create policies
that will enable Yerevan to assume the initiative in "settling the
Nagorno-Karabakh problem," and to provide the legal basis for Armenia
to act as the official guarantor of the breakaway region’s
security. Negotiations with Azerbaijan on Karabakh’s status are termed
the only acceptable way to resolve the territorial conflict.

In recent months, the two countries have experienced a rise in
rhetorical jostling over everything from the format of negotiations to
alleged cease-fire violations and Azerbaijan’s $2 billion military
build-up. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. At the
same time, several instances of intensive fighting along the contact
line separating Armenian and Azerbaijani forces have occurred in
recent weeks. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

Within the context of rising tension, the parliamentary statement
appeared designed to send Baku a signal that Yerevan won’t be bullied,
and it won’t remain inactive in the face of expanding lobbying efforts
by Azerbaijan. During a speech to parliament, the statement’s author,
Parliamentary Speaker Tigran Torosian, declared that "[t]he Armenian
side has for a long time overlooked the fact that full and truthful
information about the origin and development of the conflict must be
presented to the international community."

"It seems to Azerbaijan that it can solve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem
by means of war," continued Torosian. "Azerbaijan even began to
blackmail different international organizations, as well as against
the Minsk Group co-chairmen [who oversee negotiations] and,
unfortunately, we have to admit that it has had its certain
influence."

Foreign Minister Nalbandian will hold his first meeting with
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in Strasbourg on May
6. The encounter has been billed merely as a get-acquainted session,
although Nalbandian has told Armenian media that he hopes that the
meeting could lead to a resumption of talks between the two countries.

For now, Azerbaijan has dismissed the Nagorno-Karabakh statement as
nothing new. "We call on Armenia to be constructive," Azerbaijani
foreign ministry spokesperson Khazar Ibrahim was quoted as saying by
the APA news agency. "Such types of statements have not influenced the
negotiation process positively."

In recent months, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and other top
Azeri official have tweaked Armenian leaders and experts with a series
of provocative statements, such as advancing a claim that Yerevan is
"an old Azerbaijani town" that needs to be returned to Azerbaijan. On
occasion, the claim has extended to all of the Republic of Armenia.

"We react to [the claim] ironically, but it may have serious
consequences," commented independent analyst Levon
Melik-Shahnazarian. He termed Armenia’s April 29 statement on Karabakh
"the first step" towards responding to these allegations.

One influential political force in Yerevan criticized the statement
for not going far enough. MPs belonging to the Heritage Party, the
only opposition force in parliament, voted against adopting the
statement. Party leader Raffi Hovannisian, who supports recognition of
Karabakh’s independence, called the document "toothless" and
"unprincipled." His preference is for government recognition of
Karabakh’s independence.

Editor’s Note: Gayane Abrahamyan is a writer for the ArmeniaNow.com
weekly in Yerevan.