Interfax, Russia
March 18 2010

Baku distorting situation in negotiations on Karabakh – Armenian FM

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian has accused Azerbaijan of
distorting the essence of the negotiating process on settling the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

"Azerbaijan is distorting even what it accepts – the essence of the
negotiating process and the discussions," Nalbandian said at a press
conference in Yerevan on Thursday.

"We can only welcome that Azerbaijan accepts the Madrid Principles of
settling the conflict. Although they are claiming that they accept the
principles with some exceptions, we think there are more exceptions
there than what the Azeris actually accept," he said.

The Madrid Principles remain on the table in the negotiations on
settling the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, he said.

"We have repeatedly received and are receiving working proposals from
the Minsk Group co-chairs within the framework of the Madrid
Principles.

We discuss these and the previous proposals. Saying that one of the
parties accepts these principles and the other does not is only a
screen that Azerbaijan has used from time to time, especially lately,"
Nalbandian said.

The OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs proposed the Madrid Principles to
Armenia and Azerbaijan in November 2007. At the end of 2009 and in
early 2010, Yerevan and Baku were offered updated Madrid Principles.