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KARABAKH CONFLICT A FAR CRY FROM SETTLEMENT - OSKANIAN
ITAR-TASS, Russia
March 21 2007
YEREVAN, March 21 (Itar-Tass) - The Armenian Foreign Minister,
Vartan Oskanian, stated here on Wednesday that the sides involved
in the Karabakh conflict were "still a far cry from any agreement,
which was borne out by the outcome of the recent Geneva meeting of
the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan".
"This was quite a complicated and difficult meeting, and no progress
was achieved. However, there was no regress, too. Differences on
many problems have still not been smoothed out," Oskanian told a news
conference in the Armenian capital.
The ministers will continue their talks to pave the way to a new
meeting of the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, which is to
be held after the parliamentary elections in Armenia, scheduled for
May 12, the foreign minister stated. He is sure that "the sooner the
Karabakh conflict is settled, the better for everybody".
According to Oskanian, he was not attaching any particular importance
to the official statements of the Azerbaijan side. "The principal
milestones for us are the negotiations and the document discussed
at the talks, as well as the Azerbaijan statements, made at the
negotiations, which differ very much from the public pronouncements
of the Azeri side," he stressed.
At the bedrock of the document now discussed and of the draft
principles of Karabakh settlement "is a formula of which the Armenian
side could previously only dream", the minister noted.
"All the documents, which the co-chairmen had tabled up to 1998, began
with a preamble, stressing the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan,"
Oskanian recalled.
After 1998 (when President Robert Kocharian came to power - Itar-Tass),
the essence of the document was altered to stipulate the right of
the Nagorny Karabakh people to self-determination, which is to be
decided by a national referendum, the minister acknowledged.
"The legal foundations of Nagorny Karabakh's independence are solid,"
the Armenian foreign minister underscored. "Karabakh has never been
a component part of the independent Azerbaijan," he added.
ITAR-TASS, Russia
March 21 2007
YEREVAN, March 21 (Itar-Tass) - The Armenian Foreign Minister,
Vartan Oskanian, stated here on Wednesday that the sides involved
in the Karabakh conflict were "still a far cry from any agreement,
which was borne out by the outcome of the recent Geneva meeting of
the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan".
"This was quite a complicated and difficult meeting, and no progress
was achieved. However, there was no regress, too. Differences on
many problems have still not been smoothed out," Oskanian told a news
conference in the Armenian capital.
The ministers will continue their talks to pave the way to a new
meeting of the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, which is to
be held after the parliamentary elections in Armenia, scheduled for
May 12, the foreign minister stated. He is sure that "the sooner the
Karabakh conflict is settled, the better for everybody".
According to Oskanian, he was not attaching any particular importance
to the official statements of the Azerbaijan side. "The principal
milestones for us are the negotiations and the document discussed
at the talks, as well as the Azerbaijan statements, made at the
negotiations, which differ very much from the public pronouncements
of the Azeri side," he stressed.
At the bedrock of the document now discussed and of the draft
principles of Karabakh settlement "is a formula of which the Armenian
side could previously only dream", the minister noted.
"All the documents, which the co-chairmen had tabled up to 1998, began
with a preamble, stressing the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan,"
Oskanian recalled.
After 1998 (when President Robert Kocharian came to power - Itar-Tass),
the essence of the document was altered to stipulate the right of
the Nagorny Karabakh people to self-determination, which is to be
decided by a national referendum, the minister acknowledged.
"The legal foundations of Nagorny Karabakh's independence are solid,"
the Armenian foreign minister underscored. "Karabakh has never been
a component part of the independent Azerbaijan," he added.