AZERBAIJAN, ARMENIA THE ONLY SIDES TO NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT, SAYS AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT

Trend News Agency
Nov 21 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, Baku, 21 November / Trend News / Azerbaijani President
sees no other side in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, besides Azerbaijan
and Armenia.

"There is no other side in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, besides
Azerbaijan and Armenia. That has been always well known, and the fact
was confirmed by the signature of the Armenian President in the Moscow
Declaration," Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said at his meeting
with the participants of the Baku round table entitled Azerbaijan in
the 21st Century – Strategy of Development.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenia’s Serzh Sargsyan and
Russia’s Dmitry Medvedev signed a declaration at the end of their
meeting in Mein Dorf castle near Moscow on 2 November. Presidents
of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan decided to make joint efforts to
normalize the situation in Caucasus and requested Foreign Ministers
to make efforts to solve the [Armenian-Azerbaijani] Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict. The declaration calls for the settlement of the conflict in
line with the principles and norms of international law and decisions
and documents adopted in this respect, which will create favourable
conditions for economic development and comprehensive cooperation in
the region.

President said that mere signing of the declaration is not enough. "
Armenia’s political will is required to make a sound decision – to
withdraw Armenian troops from the territory that has never belonged
to Armenia, to stop aggression, to pursue a policy meeting the
international norms. In this case, peace in the Caucasus will be
ensured very soon," he said.

According to President Aliyev, adoption of the Moscow Declaration
that was signed on the initiative of the Russian President is a
positive fact. "The Declaration clearly specifies main mechanisms
to settle the conflict. Those are resolutions and decisions meeting
international norms and rights. The Declaration is an important
political document stipulating for the ways of settlement of the
conflict, and they base on international standards. The guarantee
section of the Declaration specifies the guarantees of every stage
of the settlement," President said.

The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began in
1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan
lost the Nagorno-Karabakh, except of Shusha and Khojali, in December
1991. In 1992-93, Armenian Armed Forces occupied Shusha, Khojali and
Nagorno-Karabakh’s seven surrounding regions. In 1994, Azerbaijan
and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which time the active
hostilities ended. The countries keep on peace negotiating through
the OSCE Minsk Group.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress