EU PLEDGES SUPPORT FOR RESOLVING NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT

Xinhua

Dec 9 2008
China

BRUSSELS, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) — The European Union (EU) on Tuesday
promised to provide support for resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The EU welcomed the Moscow Declaration as a good basis for further
progress toward resolving the decades-long issue within the framework
of the negotiation process of the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)’s Minsk Group.

The EU will do whatever it can to facilitate means to resolve
regional conflicts, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Javier Solana
told reporters after the Cooperation Council meetings between the EU
and three Southern Caucus countries — Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia.

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and his Azeri counterpart
Elmar Mammadyarov promised that the two sides would work to find ways
to resolve the issue according to the Moscow document.

On Nov. 2, the presidents of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a
joint declaration on the peaceful settlement of the disputed territory
of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The parties pledged to improve the situation in the South Caucasus and
affirm the importance of OSCE mediation, agreeing that "the peaceful
settlement should be accompanied by legally binding international
guarantees of all aspects and stages," the document said.

In a statement issued after a meeting between the EU-Armenian
Cooperation Council, the EU said the recent crisis in Georgia confirmed
that the EU plays a constructive role in the region and is stepping
up its cooperation with the Southern Caucasus.

"Alongside deepening bilateral relations, the EU’s Eastern Partnership
initiative and the Black Sea Synergy will further strengthen relations
with Southern Caucasus countries," said the statement.

During the meeting, the EU side presented the main points of the
Eastern Partnership initiative, adopted by the European Commission
on Dec. 3, which proposes the creation of a stronger policy framework
for EU’s future relations with eastern partners at both the bilateral
and multilateral levels.

The EU also welcomed Armenian and Turkish efforts aimed at improving
bilateral relations, including the recent meeting between the two
countries’ foreign ministers in Istanbul.

On Tuesday, the EU and Armenia signed an agreement on air services.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress