NKR MUST ACT AS NEGOTIATOR IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH PEACE PROCESS

news.am
March 4 2010
Armenia

At his meeting with reporters on March 4, Vahram Atanesyan, Chairman
of the Foreign Relations Committee, NKR Parliament, stated that no
essential changes have taken place in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace
process nor should they be expected in the near future. He pointed
out a certain halt in the negotiations.

Speaking of Azerbaijan’s position, Atanesyan stated that Azerbaijan
is trying to misrepresent the problem and the peace process, offering
its peculiar interpretation of the principle of peoples’ right to
self-determination.

"By the peoples’ right to self-determination we mean the international
recognition of exercised right to self-determination, that is, the
de facto independence. We believe this is the best solution to the
problem. Thus, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) will actually
be recognized as a state formed on the basis of the peoples’
right to self-determination. Thereafter, the NKR, as a negotiator
with full rights, will be able to discuss all the controversial
issues with Azerbaijan. This is our view of the problem," Atanesyan
said. "The policy of the NKR Executive led by the President is that
the Nagorno-Karabakh problem is impossible to resolve without the
NKR’s immediate participation," he said.

The NKR MP proposed stopping to make use of the "liberated territories"
phrase, as, according to the NKR Constitution, they are part of
Nagorno-Karabakh. Also, he proposed the term "repatriation" be used
instead of "resettlement," as from 1923 to 1988, when it was part of
Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh was subjected to demographic aggression.