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Analysis: Armenia, Azerbaijan In Fresh Talks On Karabakh

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  • Analysis: Armenia, Azerbaijan In Fresh Talks On Karabakh

    Analysis: Armenia, Azerbaijan In Fresh Talks On Karabakh
    By Harry Tamrazian

    Radio Free Europe, Czech Republic
    Aug 31 2004

    Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian and his Azerbaijani
    counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov met yesterday in the presence of
    international mediators for a third time in as many months, but again
    left no indications of an imminent breakthrough in the unresolved
    Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

    The daylong meeting again took place in the Czech capital Prague
    and was attended by the French, Russian, and U.S. co-chairs of the
    Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk
    Group. It was the first face-to-face encounter between Oskanian and
    Mammadyarov since the envoys' visit to the conflict zone last month.

    "We are continuing what we began at our first meeting," Oskanian told
    RFE/RL during a lunchtime break in the talks. "Our main objective is
    to create a common basis upon which we could build during further
    negotiations. We are working toward that objective and I can't say
    we have achieved it," he added.

    Asked whether the two sides have made any progress in the last few
    months, he said: "It's a bit early to speak of common approaches. But
    the dialogue is useful."

    While touring Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Nagorno-Karabakh in late July,
    the mediators openly criticized the conflicting parties for their
    perceived intransigence. The troika said bluntly that the onus is
    on them, not the Minsk Group, to push the protracted peace process
    forward.

    The co-chairs were earlier said to be working on a new peace plan that
    would try to combine the so-called step-by-step strategy of conflict
    resolution preferred by Azerbaijan with the Armenian side's insistence
    on a package deal that would settle all issues simultaneously. But
    they declined to comment on this report.
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