Interview with Eduard Lintner, Bundestag state secretary and chairman of the German-Azerbaijani Association.
Q: The Karabakh conflict settlement seems to have stalled, judging from statements by the Azerbaijani leadership. Do you think the conflict can be settled without the involvement of the international community?
A: I think the international community is acting too slowly in the process of the Karabakh conflict settlement. Certainly, the superpowers represented in the Minsk Group could play an important role in this process as the co-chairing states. Therefore, I understand the position of the Azerbaijani leadership.
Q: Why do you think the leading states are trying to normalize relations between Turkey and Armenia and to get the border between the two countries opened, forgetting that this border was closed because of the occupation of Azerbaijani land by Armenia?
A: I think the links between the normalization of relations between Turkey and Armenia and the opening of borders and the problem of the Karabakh conflict settlement must be preserved. I do not think it correct to open borders and then hope that it will influence Karabakh. I am convinced that these two processes are linked and they will help settle the most urgent problem of the region — Nagorno Karabakh.
Q: France is thought to be quite passive as a mediator on Karabakh and does not fully represent EU interests in stability in the South Caucasus. What do you think of the proposal to replace France with another European representative, for example, Germany?
A: I do not think that this would be right. Germany is a representative of the same EU as France. On the other hand, we should work not only with France but also with other representatives of the Minsk Group and the whole European community so that they can exert more influence for a resolution of the conflict.
Q: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev recently accused some foreign representatives, who are not familiar with the realities of the South Caucasus, of biased statements on the Karabakh conflict. Do you share the opinion that the world and Europe lack information about the Karabakh conflict?
A: I think most representatives of the international community have had to face this problem and, certainly, they are quite familiar with it. But probably, there are people who do not know this problem well. And I understand your president who urges the countries to abstain from a one-sided interpretation of the problem and to consider it in all aspects, from the position of the norms and principles of international law, the main one of which is the principle of territorial integrity.
News.Az
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