FRANCE ‘MEETS COMMITMENTS’ TO AZERBAIJAN AS KARABAKH MEDIATOR

news.az
March 17 2010
Azerbaijan

Natalie Goulet Senator Natalie Goulet has pledged France’s commitment
as an OSCE mediator on Karabakh.

Her comments came in the wake of a row about the mistranslation
of remarks by French mediator Bernard Fassier at a NATO seminar in
Yerevan. Fassier described as a ‘complete distortion’ reports that he
said Azerbaijan would lose a war with Armenia because of the bravery
of Armenian soldiers.

Natalie Goulet spoke to journalists today when she visited former
President Heydar Aliyev’s memorial in the Avenue of Honour and
Martyrs’ Avenue.

Goulet said that France met its commitment to Azerbaijan in the OSCE
Minsk Group.

‘France is actively working with the Minsk Group. We hope that the
necessary result on solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will
be achieved soon.’

Goulet highly appreciated relations between the Azerbaijani and French
parliaments, describing the relationship as deep and strong.

Asked about the recognition of the ‘Armenian genocide’ by the French
Senate, Goulet said: ‘I was not elected at that time. I have no
responsibility for that. I think history should be written only
by historians.’

Addressing the presidential Strategic Studies Centre, Goulet encouraged
Azerbaijan to develop regional cooperation and reinforce its position
as a regional leader.

‘I think that the first step that would reinforce Azerbaijan’s
stability and its position would be to boost regional cooperation and
reinforce its leading positions in the Caspian region,’ Goulet said.

She said that Azerbaijan faced many threats, including the Karabakh
conflict and Armenia’s failure to fulfil UN resolutions on withdrawal
from the territory.

‘We can also see the militarization of the Caspian region today and
this is frightening,’ she said.