IF ARMENIA DOES NOT TAKE PART IN THE TALKS, AZERBAIJAN WILL HAVE TO
NEGOTIATE WITH KARABAKH
Lragir.am
25-05-2007 16:44:40
Manvel Sargsyan, expert for the Caucasus Center, told reporters May 25
that nothing has changed since 1994 with regard to the settlement of
the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the visit of the co-chairs to Yerevan
the day before did not bring any news.
Manvel Sargsyan also stated the statements coming from different
levels that Karabakh must participate in the talks are out of
despair. He says they have a political context. `They were
repeating all the time that the co-chairs will come after May 12,
there will be a meeting of presidents in June, but only two co-chairs
came, one did not come, they did not act seriously, they did not go to
Karabakh. They displayed that this issue would not be manipulated
during the election. Maybe it is very good.’
Manvel Sargsyan thinks Karabakh is not participating in the talks,
because ` nobody wants Karabakh to participate.’
Manvel Sargsyan reminds that after the cease-fire in 1994 the talks
were three-party for 6 or 7 months, Armenia, Karabakh, Azerbaijan. For
the international community, the format of the talks has no meaning,
and if Armenia does not take part in the talks, Azerbaijan will have
to negotiate with Karabakh. `Karabakh must deal with its
political problems but you have to cede these problems; if Armenia
does not cede, and assumes to deal with these problems, Azerbaijan
happily negotiates with you. The territorial dispute with Armenia is
one problem, with Karabakh is another problem. It immediately sets a
symmetrical problem at the heart of the territorial dispute, you took
this much, I took that much,’ Manvel Sargsyan stated.