New Push to Settle Karabakh Conflict Made at OSCE Summit
Asbarez
Dec 5th, 2009

ATHENS (Combined Sources)-The foreign ministers of over 50 countries
making up Europe’s largest security structure praised Armenia and
Azerbaijan late Wednesday for their latest pledge to `work
intensively’ to overcome disagreements hampering the resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

`We urge the parties to sustain the positive dynamic of the
negotiations and strongly support their commitment to finalize the
Basic Principles on the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict, based on the Madrid Document in order to begin drafting a
comprehensive peace agreement in good faith and without delay,’ they
said in a joint statement issued at the end of a two-day conference
held in Athens.

`We are convinced there is today a real opportunity to build a future
of peace, stability, and prosperity for the entire region,’ the
ministers added on behalf of the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Karabakh Declaration: An Armenian Diplomatic Victory?

The OSCE welcomed in that regard a joint declaration adopted on
Tuesday by the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers as well as
top diplomats from the United States, Russia and France, the three
nations co-chairing the OSCE Minsk Group on Karabakh.

Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian and his Azerbaijani
counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov held talks on Monday and Tuesday in
addition to separate meetings with the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group. They were joined later on Tuesday by Foreign Ministers Sergey
Lavrov of Russia and Bernard Kouchner of France and U.S. Deputy
Secretary of State James Steinberg.

In declaration, the five men noted the current `positive dynamic’ in
Armenian-Azerbaijani peace talks. `They agreed that the increasing
frequency of these meetings has significantly contributed to an
enhanced dialogue between the parties and forward movement toward
finalizing the Basic Principles for the Peaceful Settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, proposed in Madrid on November 29, 2007,’
read the statement.

The statement, read out by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov,
said the conflicting parties reaffirmed their `commitment to work
intensively to resolve the remaining issues’ and cut a framework deal
based on the internationally recognized principles of `non-use of
force or threat of force, territorial integrity, and the equal rights
and self-determination of peoples.’

Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Nalbandian described the declaration
as one of the `greatest achievements of Armenian diplomacy.’ He said
that this was the first time the Co-Chairs had adopted a written
statement underscoring the need to observe those three principles of
international law.

The OSCE foreign ministers had also voiced support for those
principles. Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou, who serves as
the Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE, emphasized the importance of their
joint statement, at a late-night news conference. He said it is the
first document of its kind adopted by at an OSCE ministerial
conference in a decade.

Earlier in the day, the European Union called for an `appropriate
combination’ of these principles through Foreign Minister Carl Bildt
of Sweden, the current holder of the EU presidency. `We call again
upon Armenia and Azerbaijan to take the necessary decisions to achieve
a breakthrough with the endorsement of the Basic Principles proposed
in Madrid on November 29, 2007,’ Bildt told the OSCE conference.

Kouchner also mentioned the Karabakh conflict in his speech at the
gathering, speaking of `significant progress’ in the negotiating
process. `Now is the time to make decisions and I exhort the two
parties to seize upon the chance offered to them and finalize, without
delay, the principles of settlement proposed to them,’ he said.

Armenia and Azerbaijan Address the OSCE

Both Nalbandian and Mammadyarov stressed the importance of the
five-party statement in their individual remarks to the OSCE. The
Armenian minister emphasized the fact that Azerbaijan signed up to the
principle of self-determination that has long been championed by the
Armenian side.

Despite that, Mammadyarov insisted on the restoration of Azerbaijan’s
control over Nagorno-Karabakh during his remarks to the council on
December 2. `Providing self-governance for Nagorno-Karabakh within
Azerbaijan will be a just and durable solution, and it can
dramatically reduce tensions and challenges for peace and stability in
the region,’ Mammadyarov said.

The remark highlighted the conflicting parties’ differing public
interpretations of the basic principles of a Karabakh settlement
outlined in the Madrid principles. The proposed agreement calls for
the transfer to Azerbaijan of liberated territories linking Armenia
and Karabakh and a future referendum of self-determination in the
Armenian-controlled territory.

In his speech, Mammadyarov also accused Armenia of occupying almost 20
percent of his country’s internationally recognized territory,
displacing hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis and destroying their
cultural heritage. `We in Azerbaijan strongly believe that withdrawal
of Armenian troops in a fixed time framework from the occupied
territories of Azerbaijan will open a tremendous opportunity for the
region, providing different environment of predictability, development
and benefit for everyone and for the entire region. This is the core
of the issue,’ he said.

Speaking at the OSCE forum later in the day, Nalbandian accused
Mammadyarov of seeking to `distort’ the essence of the Karabakh
conflict and international efforts to resolve it. That, he said, is
hampering further progress in the peace process.

Nalbandian also asked the European security structure to take measures
against Azerbaijan, whose military buildup is violating the ceiling
set by the 1990 Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe, the Regnum
news agency reported. `Azerbaijan is in breach of one of the founding
principles of the OSCE: non-use of force and/or a threat to use
force,’ he said.

Closer to a Compromise

Both two ministers noted that the parties have moved closer to
hammering out a compromise peace accord. `I should admit that there
are positive dynamics in the latest talks and both sides together with
the Minsk Group Co-chairs agreed to intensify negotiations,’ said
Mammadyarov.

But neither minister would be drawn on possible time frames for
finalizing the basic principles that envisage a gradual resolution of
the conflict. Nor did they mention the possibility of yet another
meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents in the coming
weeks.

The two leaders have held six face-to-face meetings this year.
According to the mediators, they made progress `in some areas’ at
their last talks held in Munich on November 22.

Turkey Upholds Karabakh Precondition

Addressing the council on Wednesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu stressed the importance of a Nagorno-Karabakh settlement
acceptable to Azerbaijan for the normalization of his country’s
relations with Armenia.

Speaking about the international efforts to broker a solution to the
Karabakh dispute, Davutoglu urged respect for Azerbaijan’s territorial
integrity, saying it `must constitute the bedrock’ of such a
solution.’

`Turkey is of the view that efforts aimed at the resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the creation of an environment of
durable peace and stability in the region are mutually reinforcing and
have a direct impact on one another. The two processes cannot be seen
in isolation,’ Davutoglu added in a clear reference to Ankara’s
demands on Yerevan to make heavy concessions in the Karabakh conflict
for normal relations with Turkey.

Davutoglu and his Armenian counterpart, Edward Nalbandian, held talks
on the sidelines of the OSCE meeting late Tuesday. Official Armenian
and Turkish sources said the talks focused on the implementation of
the recently signed protocols envisaging the establishment of
diplomatic relations between the two states and the reopening of their
border. The official Turkish Anatolia news agency said the Karabakh
issue was also on the agenda, a claim denied by Nalbandian. `We didn’t
discuss the Karabakh issue,’ he told journalists on Wednesday.

In a speech at the forum earlier in the day, Nalbandian warned Ankara
against delaying the mandatory parliamentary ratification of the
protocols. `Unjustified delays and preconditions, including a drive to
link the issue with the Karabakh conflict, can harm both processes,’
he said.

President Serzh Sarkisian issued a similar warning at the weekend
before the summit. He implied that Yerevan could walk away from the
agreements if Ankara fails to implement them within a `reasonable time
frame.’

The Turkish Foreign Minister, however, reassured his Azeri counterpart
during talks in Athens that his government would continue linking
Karabakh to the normalization of relations with Armenia.

The Azeri Foreign Ministry said that Davutoglu told Mammadyarov that
the ratification of the Armenian-Turkish protocols, signed on October
10 in Zurich, is `possible only after the occupation of Azerbaijani
lands by Armenia ends.’