Moscow opposed to "outside interference" with Garabagh settlement

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20-05-2009 14:47:52

A top Russian security official has said Moscow was opposed to any
"outside interference" with the resolution of the Armenia-Azerbaijan
conflict over Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh.
Speaking on Friday in Yerevan, Yuri Zubakov, Deputy Secretary of
Russia`s Security Council, told a conference on security and
cooperation in the volatile Caucasus region that his country was
against attempts to force any "recipe" of the conflict settlement upon
the parties.
"The main responsibility should rest with the conflicting sides
themselves. And only a decision that would promote peace and strengthen
stability in the Caucasus and prevent it from turning into a ground for
military and political rivalry will be able to stay on," Zubakov said.
According to the deputy secretary, though the sides have not achieved
any progress in the peace process so far, tendencies inspiring optimism
have been observed.
"Despite the fact that some important issues regarding the main
principles of the Garabagh settlement have yet to find their solution,
the tendency that has emerged is a basis for logical, but cautious
optimism."