YEREVAN STEPPING BACK FROM MOSCOW COMMITMENTS
AzerNews Weekly
Nov 19 2008
Azerbaijan
Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian has said that Upper (Nagorno)
Garabagh, an Azeri region under Armenian occupation, should be brought
into talks on settling the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict.
Sarkisian added, during an interview with a local public TV channel,
that any agreement to end a nearly two-decade-long dispute could be
reached only between Azerbaijan and the leader of the self-proclaimed
Upper Garabagh republic. He also said that a solution to the conflict
hinges on the recognition of the separatist entity as an independent
state.
The Azerbaijani government, however, has rebuffed the statement,
saying it blatantly contradicts the declaration recently signed by the
Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian presidents. The Foreign Ministry
spokesman, Khazar Ibrahim, noted that the document confirms that
Baku and Yerevan are the only sides in peace talks. Unlike Armenia,
Azerbaijan honors the conditions laid out in all documents it has
signed, including the Moscow declaration, he said.
Ibrahim reiterated Baku`s stance, saying granting any status to
Upper Garabagh was possible strictly within Azerbaijan`s territorial
integrity.
In an effort to quicken the peace process, Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev offered to hold a meeting of Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders,
with Russia`s participation, following talks with Armenian President
Serzh Sarkisian in Yerevan on October 21. The Moscow-brokered
trilateral talks took place on November 2 and concluded with the
signing of the declaration. The paper urges further OSCE-mediated
dialog between the sides and joint efforts in bolstering stability
in the South Caucasus through a political settlement of the conflict
based upon principles of international law.
Analysts say tension and discord within Armenia are prompting President
Sarkisian to make such statements. At a time when the world community,
including the Azerbaijani public, has praised the Moscow declaration
as a step forward in reaching a solution to the Garabagh problem, the
attitude toward this document in Armenia is rather ambiguous. Many
there believe it favors Azerbaijan and that Russia has "sacrificed"
Armenia for the sake of its own interests. For this reason the Armenian
leader, from time to time, brings up the Garabagh status issue in a
bid to allay growing discontent at home. Sarkisian`s recent visit to
Upper Garabagh, as well as his seeking to discuss peace talks with
the leaders of the country`s political parties, apparently is a bid
to ease rumblings within his country.