AZERI OFFICIAL BLAMES MEDIATORS FOR FRUITLESS TALKS
Assa-Irada
July 21 2008
Azerbaijan
The OSCE mediators brokering settlement to the Armenia-Azerbaijan
Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh conflict are holding fruitless discussions,
a senior Azerbaijani official said. The head of the Presidents
Office international relations department, Novruz Mammadov, told the
Baku-based AOV channel that nonetheless, he hoped for more substantial
steps to be taken by the Minsk Group (MG) co-chairs at their upcoming
meeting in Moscow at the end of July. The co-chairs should be aware
that the responsibility for the endless extension of peace talks and
lack of any result rests with them.
Therefore, they should not be interested in this extension, he
said. Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian has claimed that Azerbaijans
criticism of the MG co-chairmen was a little trick. In doing so,
Azerbaijan is trying to somewhat soften the mediators demands, said
Sarkisian, who is himself known for using such tools. Commenting on
Armenias calling Azerbaijan an avenger and its claims on the latters
militarist statements, Mammadov said this was a step designated for
Yerevans domestic policy. He said Armenias course aimed at preserving
internal stability is erroneous, and if it fails to rectify this
mistake, this could have tragic ramifications for the neighboring
country. With regard to US co-chair Matthew Bryzas welcoming both
conflicting sides adherence to the peace process, Mammadov said this
was a result of only Bakus proper stance. As for Armenia, this country
has never made any effort to ensure peace and stability. The fact
that full-scale military action has not flared up between the sides to
this day is the merit of only Azerbaijan, Mammadov added. Azerbaijan
and Armenia fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a
cease-fire in 1994, but Armenia continues to occupy Upper Garabagh
and seven other Azerbaijani districts in defiance of international
law. Peace talks have been fruitless so far.