Armenia supports principles and elements, offered by the co-chairs as a basis for negotiations to reach solution.
Armenian FM Edward Nalbandian gave an interview to Russian Today channel.
Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian called an attempt to resolve the conflict by military means a big illusion.
"Those who think that it is possible to solve conflicts by use of force or through military actions, it is a big illusion, because after all wars it is necessary to get back to the negotiating table, but in worse conditions”, Nalbandian said in an interview with Russia Today.
According to him, any bad peace is better than any war. "It is natural, because, you know, problems cannot be solved by way of war", Nalbandian said.
Speedy resolution of the Karabakh conflict meets the interests of all parties, the minister said. "Firstly, I believe that time does not play into the hands of either side: the sooner we solve this conflict, the more it will meet the interests of all parties to the conflict", said Nalbandian.
He disagreed with the view that the positions of the parties have not become closer since the moment of signing an agreement on ceasefire in 1994.
“In the past we were close to solving the conflict, for example, in 2011, when negotiations, mediated by France, were held in Paris. France, as one of the Minsk Group co-chairs, at that time played an active role and the sides were very close to resolution of the conflict. Unfortunately, Azerbaijan, President Heydar Aliyev denies the agreements, which were attained in Paris, the so-called Paris principles, who were further put on paper in Key-West”, Nalbandian said. He said the Azerbaijani president explained this by saying that the public opinion in Azerbaijan is not ready to this.
Almost all its population voted for independence of Nagorno Karabakh, Nalbandian said. He noted that Karabakh was included into Aezrbaijan on the basis of the decision of the Caucasus bureau of the boshevik party.
“Certainly, the population of Nagorno Karabakh, people of Nagorno Karabakh did not agree with this decision. But the leaders of the Soviet state used to say: you know we have no borders between the states, there are territorial-administrative borders, we all are inside a single state. But when the case came to the USSR collapse, the referendum was held in Nagorno Karabakh and 99.89% voted for independence”, Nalbandian said.
He noted that before this on 26 November 1991 the Supreme Council of Azerbaijan eliminated the Karabakh autonomy, as the national territorial formation and in two days the Committee of Constitutional Supervision of the USSR condemned this decision.
“It is important that the ceasefire achieved in 1994 is still maintained. Separate incidents really take place. In order to support these incidents, there were the offers of the international community, OSCE, Minsk Group co-chairs, supported by Armenia, about adopting measures to consolidate ceasefire, withdrawal of snipers from the contact line, proposal to attain agreement on nonuse of force. Unfortunately, Azerbaijan refuses to implement these proposals of the world community”, the Armenian foreign minister said.
“Armenia supports principles and elements, offered by the co-chairs as a basis for negotiations to reach solution. But it is for the people of Nagorno Karabakh to decide whom to live with, how to live. And this free will of the people of Nagorno Karabakh must have a legal force. This is fixed in proposals, presented by the Minsk Group co-chairs”, the Armenian FM said.
The Southern Sudan may become a precedent for the resolution of the Karabakh conflict and there are many precedents of this kind”, Nalbandian said in the interview.
Armenian FM Edward Nalbandian considers Turkey’s position destructive in the issue of Karabakh and resolution of bilateral relations.
“Turkey’s position is not merely constructive, but destructive in terms of this conflict and in terms of normalizing the Armenian-Turkish relations”, Nalbandian said.
“Yes, we started the process, held talks and came to signing protocols (in 2009), agreeing with the Turkish side that we do this without prerequisites. But after signing the protocols, Turkey showed no will to observe one of the main principles of the international law, which emerged with democracy-this is the principle pacta sunt servanda, that is agreements must be observed”, Nalbandian said.
He said these prerequisites are the attempts to bind the resolution of the Karabakh conflict to normalizing of Armenian-Turkish relations.
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