Azeri Press Agency, Azerbaijan
Dec 27 2008

Matthew Bryza: If there is ever to be a peaceful agreement to the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict, societal leaders must be willing to help
lead their fellow citizens toward compromise ` EXCLUSIVE

[ 27 Dec 2008 13:07 ]
`I have no way to assess whether Secretary of State-designate Clinton
will decide to retain me in my current position’

Baku. Viktoriya Dementyeva ` APA. American co-chair of OSCE Minsk
Group Matthew Bryza’s interview to APA concerning the results of the
work done for the solution to Nagorno Karabakh conflict in 2008

-How do you assess 2008 in terms of the negotiations on the solution
to Nagorno Karabakh conflict? Could the Minsk Group make an
improvement on the solution?

-In my opinion, the main achievement in 2008 for the Nagorno-Karabakh
peace process has been the emergence of a constructive relationship
between Presidents Sarksian and Aliyev. While I would not yet say
that the two leaders trust each other sufficiently to reach the
compromises required to finalize the Basic Principles, I am pleased
by the willingness each President is showing to work through the
remaining difficult issues with his counterpart. In short, the
psychological atmosphere may now be right to catalyze tough
decisions.

My main disappointment has probably been the unwillingness of many
public figures in both countries, whether political leaders or
journalists, to liberate themselves from conventional ways of
thinking. If there is ever to be a peaceful agreement to the Nagorno
Karabakh conflict, societal leaders must be willing to help lead their
fellow citizens toward compromise. Unfortunately, rather than showing
this sort of leadership, many societal leaders seem more concerned
with trying to "score points" by criticizing statements by those
involved in the peace process that break new ground.

-Has the date and place of Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents’
meeting been fixed? Can the presidents meet in the Annual meeting of
the World Economic Forum in Davos at the end of January?

-As Presidents Sarksian and Aliyev noted in the November 2 Moscow
Declaration, the sides should continue and intensify their efforts to
finalize the Basic Principles in close cooperation with the Minsk
Group Co-Chairs. The parties have made considerable progress. To
finalize their work, they will need to prepare their societies for
difficult compromises that will bring peace, stability, and
prosperity. The Minsk Group Co-Chairs will facilitate this work in
early 2009 by traveling again to the region and preparing the ground
for another meeting between the Presidents. It is up to the
Presidents to decide whether they wish to meet on the margins of the
World Economic Forum in Davos.

-Will you continue your activity in this matter as a co-chair?

-I have no way to assess whether Secretary of State-designate Clinton
will decide to retain me in my current position. What I can say with
absolute certainty is that doing everything possible to help the
parties reach a peaceful agreement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
will remain of great personal importance to me. I feel connected to
the people of the South Caucasus, and wish to help all them who seek
to live in peace, prosperity, and democratic freedom.