INDEPENDENCE OF KARABAKH IS NOT IN RUSSIA’S INTERESTS
Lragir.am
19 May 06
Vladimir Putin told Robert Kocharyan to reject the invitation of the
President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Leluche, who has already
met with the Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliev. Russian political
scientist Andranik Mihranyan is said to have made such a statement
on May 18 in Yerevan. On May 19 he was invited to the Hayeli Club,
and the news reporters tried to find out from him if this information
was true. He said he had not asked Putin or Kocharyan and he does not
know what they talked about, or whether they talked or not. Andranik
Mihranyan said it was Robert Kocharyan’s decision to decline the
invitation and there has been no pressure on behalf of Moscow.
“At least I do not know about it. You know that the heads of state
decide themselves the advantages or disadvantages of taking one step
or another. I think in the current reality it was much more compliant
with the interests of Armenia, therefore Kocharyan did not go to that
summit,” says Andranik Mihranyan.
The meeting in Paris would probably be part of the process of
settlement of the Karabakh conflict if it would take place at all. It
is difficult to tell what its influence and result would be. Andranik
Mihranyan says he is optimistic about the settlement of regional
issues. Mihranyan points to the model of Kosovo to underlie the
settlement of these problems. According to him, Putin and Lavrov have
already announced to the West that the independence of Kosovo should
be assumed as a precedent and be applied to Transdnyestr, Abkhazia
and Osetia. Andranik Mihranyan says it is the duty of the Armenian
diplomacy to extend the list and include Nagorno Karabakh. “In order
for Russia to recognize, the Armenian diplomacy should explain that
this is in the interests of Russia,” says Mihranyan.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
