ARMENIAN MINISTER UPBEAT ON MOSCOW TALKS ON KARABAKH
Armenia TV
Nov 4 2008
Armenia
Armenian Foreign Minister Edvard Nalbandyan has voiced hope that "the
intensification of the [Karabakh] negotiations" after the Armenian
and Azerbaijani presidents met in Moscow on 2 November "will open a
door to the settlement" of the conflict over the disputed territory,
Armenia TV reported on 4 November.
Nalbandyan told the channel that "the meeting in Moscow was
constructive. The meeting was efficient in the sense that a document
has been signed between Armenia and Azerbaijan for the first time in
14 years; and the document was signed at the level of presidents".
However, the Armenian foreign minister added that "a declaration is not
a treaty, but it is also important in the sense that this declaration
mentions the significance of a peaceful, political settlement of the
Karabakh issue, as well as of continuation of the mediator efforts
of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group".
Nalbandyan noted that the declaration attached importance to
"international guarantees that should accompany that settlement
process". The minister said that Russia had initiated the meeting
in view of its co-chairing of the Minsk Group and added that Russia
"always played a constructive role in the peace process… This
initiative was extremely important for opening a new stage in terms
of boosting the negotiations".
Armenia TV quoted Nalbandyan as saying that Armenian President Serzh
Sargsyan will discuss the Karabakh settlement with French President
Nicholas Sarkozy as part of his visit to France on 4 November.