SERZH SARGSYAN: DECLARATION ON NAGORNO KARABAKH SETTLEMENT WILL BE FOLLOWED BY AGREEMENT ON PRINCIPLES, THEN BY MAIN AGREEMENT

Noyan Tapan

Nov 7, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 7, NOYAN TAPAN. After the Moscow meeting an agreement
was reached between the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan to
assign the Foreign Ministers to negotiate over a document called
"Madrid principles."

In case of reaching common points an agreement on principles should be
signed, which should be followed by the main agreement. RA President
Serzh Sargsyan expressed such an opinion at the November 6 joint press
conference with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso
in Brussels. "I think there will be a need of public discussions in
this period. At least for Armenia, Armenian society I see a necessity
of a discussion, we will go to these discussions with pleasure," the
Armenian President said. He found it difficult to mention any terms,
but emphasized: "We, at least I, will strive for excluding delays
on this way." It should be mentioned that the Presidents of Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Russia had signed a Declaration on Nagorno Karabakh
settlement in Moscow, in which they had declared their readiness to
settle the conflict within the framework of OSCE Minsk Group, around
the Madrid principles.

The RA President expressed satisfaction with the results of his working
visits to France and Belgium emphasizing that he considers solved
the tasks he had set before himself: "the expectations came true."

The European Commission President, in his turn, expressed European
Union’s readiness to assist Armenia both politically and financially
for implementation of the joint actions plan. He said that soon the
European Union will send an advisory group to Armenia to assist with
the domestic reforms.