CO-CHAIRS PASS TEXT OF MAIN PRINCIPLES OF KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT TO ARMENIAN AND AZERBAIJANI FOREIGN MINISTERS
Noyan Tapan
Nov 29, 2007
MADRID, NOVEMBER 29, NOYAN TAPAN. The Armenian foreign minister Vartan
Oskanian, who is participating in the sitting of the Council of OSCE
Foreign Ministers in Mardrid, had a number of meetings on November
28 and 29.
A dinner-meeting with the Azerbaijani foreign minister E. Mamedyarov
took place on the initiative and with the participation of the OSCE
Minsk Group co-chairs on November 28. The participants discussed
issues related to the work of the Council of OSCE Foreign Ministers,
as well as the text of the paragraph on the Nagorno-Karabakh problem
in the declaration to be adopted by the Council on November 30. The
sides also conducted negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh peaceful
process-related issues that have not yet been agreed on.
The discussions continued on the following day with the participation
of Sergei Lavrov and Bernard Kouchner, the foreign ministers of
Russia and France – the OSCE Minsk Group’s co-charing countries,
and Nicholas Burns, U.S. Under Secreatry of State. Giving a brief
assessment of the recent negotiation process on settlement of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the latter persons passed the text of the
main principles of the conflict setllement to the foreign ministers
of Armenia and Azerbaijan. The text contains the co-chairs’ proposals
on the issues not agreed on by the sides.
The co-chairs are expected to visit the region to familiarize
themselves with the presidents’ proposals on these approaches.
During the meeting of the Armenian foreign minister with the OSCE
Secretary General Marc Perrin de Brichambaut, issues related to
OSCE reforms and the solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem were
discussed. The interlocutors also addressed the format of the OSCE
observer mission’s participation in the upcoming presidential elections
in Armenia.
At the meeting with the foreign minister of Iceland Ingibjorg Solrum
Gilsadottir, Vartan Oskanian attached importance to promotion of
bilateral relations, especially in international organizations. He
presented the latest developments of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
settlement process.
Issues related to the current sitting of the Council of OSCE foreign
ministers and to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem were discussed during
the meeting with the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, foreign minister of
Spain Miguel Angel Moratinos.
NT was informed by the RA MFA Press and Information Department that
meetings of the Armenian foreign minister with the foreign minister
of Kazakhstan M.
Tazhin and the US Under Secretary N. Burns are scheduled for late
November 29.
It is envisaged that V. Oskanian will make a speech at the sitting
of the Council of the OSCE foreign ministers.