Attempts To Link Armenian-Turkish Relations With Karabakh Settlement

ATTEMPTS TO LINK ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS WITH KARABAKH SETTLEMENT CAUSE STALEMATE – STEPANAKERT

Interfax
March 29 2010
Russia

President of the self-proclaimed republic of Nagorno Karabakh Bako
Saakian on Sunday evening received cochairmen of the OSCE Minsk Group
Robert Bradke (U.S.), Yury Merzlyakov (Russia) and Bernard Fassier
(France).

Saakian’s press service told Interfax that several issues related
to the current stage and prospects of settling the Karabakh conflict
were discussed.

Once again Saakian stressed that it is impossible to achieve a final
and comprehensive settlement of the conflict without the full-scale
involvement of his republic in the Armenian-Azerbaijani negotiating
process.

He said than the independence and security of Nagorno Karabakh
will not be bargained for and any attempts of a rollback can have
unpredictable consequences.

He confirmed the loyalty of the Karabakh side to the peaceful
settlement of the conflict in the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group.

The cochairmen in their turn stressed that any attempt to settle the
conflict by force is absolutely unacceptable.

Speaking of Armenian-Turkish relations Saakian said that the process
is in no way connected with the Karabakh conflict settlement and
attempts to link the two have a negative impact on both processes
driving them into a blind alley.