Talks between Azerbaijan and its neighbor Armenia over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region are in their final phase, Azeri President Эlham Aliyev stated over the weekend.
Christian ethnic Armenians, backed by Armenia, fought a war in the 1990s to end mainly Muslim Azerbaijan’s control over mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh. There was little sign of any peace deal until this year, when Azerbaijan’s close ally Turkey began to thaw its own ties with Armenia.
“Positive dynamics are observed in the negotiation process, and I can say the negotiation process is already in its final phase,” Aliyev said at a summit of Turkic-speaking nations in Azerbaijan’s autonomous region of Nakhchivan, which was also attended by Turkey’s President Abdullah Gьl.
Mediators from the United States, France and Russia say they are hopeful of a breakthrough when Aliyev meets with his Armenian counterpart, Serzh Sarksyan, in the Moldovan capital of Chisinau on Oct. 8. Turkey closed the common border in 1993 in solidarity with Azerbaijan.
Gьl, delivering a speech at the summit, also touched upon the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute, once more voicing Ankara’s support for the territorial integrity of neighboring Azerbaijan. Turkey’s efforts for normalization of its relations with Armenia, which have recently gained momentum, display Ankara’s contribution to both regional and global peace, Gьl said.
“The time has come for a resolution of all disputes in the Caucasus on the basis of the protection of the territorial integrity of regional countries — particularly the dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia. We especially attach great importance to the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, and we believe the occupation of Azerbaijani territory should be ended at once,” he said. “We also believe the time has come for this as well. We hope for a resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute through dialogue and diplomacy, and in this way that peace prevails in the entire Caucasus. However, no doubt, the first step for this will be ending the occupation [of Nagorno-Karabakh].”
Swiss to make officialstatement on protocols
An official statement on the exact date of the signing of the protocols between Armenia and Turkey on establishing diplomatic ties and opening the border will be made today in Bern, Switzerland — the country which has mediated talks between Ankara and Yerevan, the Anatolia news agency reported over the weekend, citing anonymous sources.
The protocols are likely to be sent to Parliament on Oct. 10 or 11 after being signed. Under the deal, the border should reopen within two months of ratification following Parliaments’ approval, possibly by the new year. Simultaneously with the statement in Bern, Ankara and Yerevan are also expected to deliver official statements today, Anatolia also said. The signing ceremony for the protocols is expected to take place in Zurich with the participation of Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian and Foreign Minister Davutoрlu.
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