APPROACHES OF ARMENIA AND KARABAKH TO ISSUE OF KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT WERE AND REMAIN DIFFERENT, VAHRAM ATANESIAN SAYS

Noyan Tapan

Nov 21, 2008

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 21, NOYAN TAPAN. The political discussions on the
Karabakh problem, which have been launched in Armenia, have no relation
to the discussions held in Karabakh since May, the chairman of the
Nagorno Karabakh Republic’s National Assembly Standing Committee
of Foreign Relations Vahram Atanesian said at the November 21 press
conference. Assessing positively the discussions with various political
forces that the Armenian president initiated, he at the same time noted
that the NKR president started holding such discussions earlier and
they have regular character. It was stated that there is only one issue
– the issue of international recognition of the NKR – on the agenda
of the discussions held in Karabakh. The discussions are continuing
and the political forces will come to a common conclusion by late 2008.

V. Atanesian expressed an apprehension that the discussions organized
in Armenia may create an impression for the outside world that the
country’s society lacks a united approach to solution of the Karabakh
problem.

Whereas, they in the NKR have a clear idea about the way of solving
the problem, as well as what kind of agreement should be signed and
how it should be implemented. The Karabak side’s formula of solving
the problem is the international recognition of the NKR within the
borders acceptable to the republic’s population and under conditions
of supremacy of national security.

According to V. Atanesian, the approaches of Armenia and Karabakh to
the conflict’s settlement were and remain different. For example, the
territorial issue cannot be an agenda issue for Nagorno Karabakh today,
and it is one of the differences. In response to the question about
whether it is possible that at some moment of negotiations Armenia
will start being guided by its own interests, he replied that no
decision can be imposed on Karabakh.

V. Atanesian said that the Mayendorf Declaration signed by the
presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia is not a document
that predetermines the Karabakh conflict’s settlement. He expressed
confidence that if ever such a document is signed, it will without
fail bear the signature of the Karabakh side.

V. Atanesian does not consider Karabakh’s participation in negotiations
in 1994-1997 as effective because the then foreign minister of the NKR
had to sit at the negotiation table together with the representative of
the Azerbaijani community. Today when the NKR is a successful state,
it is unacceptable to participate in negotiations in this format. At
the same time he reminded that in those years the presidents of
Armenia and Azerbaijan regularly met, and the real negotiations on
the problem were conducted between them.

In the opinion of V. Atanesian, no immediate solution to the Karabakh
problem should be expected. He considered the latest visit of the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairs as one of the visits envisaged by the schedule.