KARABAKH PROBLEM MAY BE RESOLVED WITH SELF-DETERMINATION – SARGSYAN

Interfax
Nov 17 2008
Russia

Representatives of the unrecognized Karabakh republic must take part
in the settlement process, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told
Armenian public television.

The full-scale involvement of Karabakh authorities in the negotiations
is the best way to resolve the problem, he said. "It has to be. There
is simply no other way," he added.

"The Karabakh problem will be resolved if the people of Karabakh use
their right to self-determination, i.e. if Azerbaijan recognizes
the Karabakh right to self-determination, if Karabakh and Armenia
have a land border, and if the Karabakh population receives security
guarantees," Sargsyan said.

"I have never used the phrase ‘unilateral concession’ or the word
‘concession’ in relation to Karabakh over the past 17-18 years. There
may be a compromise, but never a concession. We are resolving a
problem, which is very important for our people, and, unlike others,
we are not trying to gain benefits at various events," he said.

As for the tripartite declaration signed in Moscow, Sargsyan said that
was the only document in which Azerbaijan recognized a political way
out of the Karabakh situation.