ArmInfo. In the context of the ongoing conflict between the West and Russia concentrated in Ukraine, it is impossible to make any predictions regarding the prospects for resolving the Artsakh problem. Director of the Caucasus Institute, Alexander Iskandaryan, expressed a similar opinion to ArmInfo.
"This conflict, to put it mildly, leaves no place and, most importantly, time for the settlement of the Karabakh conflict for Moscow and not only for this conflict. Today, the Russian Federation is pursuing a policy of minimizing risks for itself and maintaining the status quo in the South Caucasus as a whole, and in Central Asia," he said.
Commenting on the desire of the EU to become an alternative platform for the settlement of Armenian- Azerbaijani problems, the political scientist assessed it, in general, positively. However, at the same time, he expressed his conviction that the EU is not capable of replacing the Russian Federation on this international track. If only simply because Moscow is not just an intermediary in this matter, but also a participant in the game. Which was vividly expressed by the sale of weapons to Armenia and Azerbaijan and the presence of Russian troops on the territory of Armenia and Artsakh.
Taking into account the common border with Azerbaijan, the many ways to influence Armenia, Moscow as a whole has much greater opportunities to influence both countries than the EU, which, in his opinion, means one thing – the European format is not able to replace the Russian negotiating format.
"However, it would be great if Brussels somehow complements Moscow in this regard, which will also be quite difficult, given the contradictions between the West and Russia. Moreover, if Moscow suddenly decides to squeeze someone out of the process, then it has at its disposal a significantly wider toolkit than the same Europeans," he said.