Behind Closed Doors, Sargsyan and Aliyev Display Constructive Attitude

During meetings behind doors closed to the public and the media, the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as the foreign ministers of both countries, display a rather constructive and diplomatic attitude, said Baku-based political analyst Rasim Musabekov, speaking to Epress.am and commenting on the upcoming Oct. 27 meeting between the presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia in the Russian city of Astrakhan.

“I don’t rule out the possibility that Kazakhstan President [Nursultan] Nazarbayev requested [Russian President Dmitry] Medvedev to organize such a meeting. Note that the Armenian-Azerbaijani confrontation earlier in Lisbon almost led to blocking the adoption of the document at the summit. This is beneficial to neither Astana nor Moscow,” he said. 

According to Musabekov, the possibility of reaching some sort of interim solution, which will have a positive effect on the Karabakh peace process, still remains. 

“I believe that any efforts which can bring peace, even if the chances are quite slim, cannot be ignored. At the OSCE summit in Athens last year, the Minsk Group Co-Chairs presented a document to the parties which is still on the (negotiating) table. Baku has said that it has approved the document, though with reservations, but Yerevan is not giving neither a positive nor negative response. 

“Perhaps additional guarantees and certain measures may encourage the conflicting parties to take the final step toward resolving the conflict,” he said. 

Note that after hours of closed meetings, the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan don’t make comments. OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs approach journalists and speak of “the parties being constructive,” “progress,” “the need to review certain proposals,” and other issues. The details are reported as the “Madrid Principles,” “Prague Provisions,” “St. Petersburg achievements,” and “on some agreements.”

The presidents make comments later, either in the international arena or in their respective countries. Azerbaijan’s president occasionally makes statements on resolving the conflict through military means: “The issue of Azerbaijani Karabakh can be resolved only within the country’s territorial integrity.”

Armenia’s leader, in turn, says that the Karabakh issue, in fact, has been resolved. It is already an established, independent state and it’s not up for discussion: “Karabakh has always been an Armenian area, while the Azerbaijani residents are guests here.”