RUSSIA TRYING TO DISSOCIATE ITSELF FROM KARABAKH CONFLICT

PanARMENIAN.Net
12.12.2008 14:42 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Russia is de facto trying to dissociate itself from
the Nagorno Karabakh conflict and doesn’t want to come to loggerheads
with anyone, a Russian politician said.

"Statements and declarations do not help but Russian presence
foils any attempt to resolve Caucasus conflicts by use of force,"
Viatcheslav Igrunov, Director of the International Institute for
Humanities and Political Studies, member of Russian Duma in 1993-2003,
told a PanARMENIAN.Net reporter.

"Certainly, Russia would like to have the entire South Caucasus
as an outpost. But the fact is that Russia doesn’t have sufficient
influence on Azerbaijan, so the republic’s concerns about possible
shift in the Russian policy are quite understandable," he said.

At the same time, Mr. Igrunov noted that Russia’s positions in the
South Caucasus strengthened after the 5-day August war. "First,
Russia managed to stop NATO expansion eastwards. Second, the Moscow
declaration of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict was signed. Third, there
will be no armed conflict in the Caucasus in the near future. Besides,
the Caucasian mentality seems to have changed. So, I do not see
negative consequences of the August war," he said.