news.am, Armenia
May 1 2010

German expert for Karabakh’s involvement in peace process

16:21 / 05/01/2010In his interview with Deutsche Welle, Director of
the Strategic Studies Center under the Azerbaijani President Elhan
Nuriyev expressed discontent with Europe’s position on the
Nagorno-Karabakh peace process. He reproached the European community
for not exerting due pressure on Yerevan for the problem to be
resolved as soon as possible.

According to him, Europe is implementing a double standard policy,
which is immoral in the 21st century. He supposes that the reason for
the European community’s reserved attitude is a special geopolitical
situation in the region, as well as fears of a clash of the
conflicting parties’ interests. Nuriyev reproached Armenian leaders
with political blindness. He claims he has never heard of an Armenian
strategy of settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Asim Mollazade, Chairman of the opposition Party for Democratic
Reforms, stated that Baku was ready for a peaceful settlement of the
conflict long ago ` with Azerbaijan’s national interests considered.
`We can live is peace and accord, and history proves that. An Armenian
church is standing in the center of Baku. We invite Armenia to sign a
peace treaty,’ he said.

The Azeri experts stressed that the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict will not only facilitate stabilization in the South Caucasus
and enable Azerbaijan to spare huge funds. The country has to spend
huge funds on defense because of Nagorno-Karabakh, but the funds might
be directed to social and education programs, welfare improvemen,
Mollazade said.

Dr. Phil. Uwe Halbach of the German Institute for International and
Security Affairs (Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik), who participated
in the Berlin conference `New geopolitical and economic cooperation in
the South Caucasus: a view from Azerbaijan’ pointed out that excluding
Nagorno-Karabakh from the settlement process was a blunder.

Mr. Johannes Regenbrecht, Head of the South Caucasus and Central Asia
Division, German Foreign Office, stated that the sides are not quite
ready for a compromise, which impedes progress in Karabakh peace
process. He called on the conflicting parties to draft an agreement on
the withdrawal of the troops from the territories under the Armenia’s
control.

T.P.