Epress.am News from Armenia
No existing or potential mediator in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has an “exclusively neutral” position, said Pavel Salin, an expert with the independent Center for Political Trends in Moscow, in an interview with Day.az.
“The same US every year provides military assistance to Armenia and Azerbaijan by means of non-combat equipment and training new soldiers. Do not forget the influence of the Armenian Diaspora in French and US political circles. Finally, there is Turkey, which aims to have an increasing impact in the resolution of the conflict and has a strategic cooperation agreement with Azerbaijan. This is logical, if the mediator has no leverage on the ‘those who are judged’ [that is, Armenia and Azerbaijan], then its offers won’t even be discussed,” said the expert.
Experience shows, says Salin, that Armenia’s and Azerbaijan’s current position is in a deadlock.
“The parties must make concessions,” he said.
For Russia, relations with both countries are important. “With Armenia, from a military and political point of view; with Azerbaijan, from a geo-economic point of view; that is, in terms of the securing Azerbaijani and Central Asian energy resources’ entry into Europe through the ‘northern neighbor’,” concluded Salin.