Mediamax News Agency, Armenia
June 5 2008
Karabakh warns Azerbaijan against resuming hostilities in Karabakh
Yerevan, 5 June: The president of the Nagornyy Karabakh republic
[NKR], Bako Sahakyan, said in an interview published in the RBK daily
today that "Azerbaijan’s militarization and military rhetoric are
having no psychological effect on us".
"The use of force will lead to a great number of casualties on both
sides, but will not settle the Karabakh problem. If necessary,
hostilities can be shifted deep inside Azerbaijan. We will surely act
in this way in case of aggression, as expanding the buffer zone will
be the only way to guarantee peace for our people," Sahakyan said.
The NKR president noted the necessity for [NKR capital] Stepanakert’s
[Xankandi] full-fledged participation in the negotiations process.
"We are not emphasizing the number of participants in the
negotiations. However, as long as Azerbaijan does not hold direct
negotiations with us, any other formats would be inefficient,"
Sahakyan said.
"At issue is whether Azerbaijan respects the right of Nagornyy
Karabakh to self-determination? So far, Azerbaijan has been making
regular threats against our state. It is irrelevant to use the very
concept of a compromise under the circumstances," the NKR president
said.
Asked about prospects for the return of Azerbaijani refugees, Sahakyan
said: "We do not rule out the return of Azerbaijani refugees to
Karabakh. However, we are sure that this just should not be done
before the issue is settled politically. We can lead these refuges to
new tragic consequences as a result of our ill-considered actions. The
issue of the Azerbaijani refugees should be also synchronized with the
issue of the Armenian refugees. However, this is being considered
unilaterally at present. Naturally, we are not content with this."