Sargsyan, Aliyev Not Ready to Lose their Ratings Because of Karabakh: Opinion

In order to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Yerevan and Baku will have to make concessions, which each party views as a defeat since it will be a serious blow to their (popularity) rating (back home), said Deputy Director of the Institute of the CIS Vladimir Zharikhin, in an interview with Comments. 

“I think the leaders of the two countries are still not ready for that,” he said. 

According to him, an important factor for Russia is that both Armenia and Azerbaijan approve Russia, and the Russian president in particular, as chief mediator in the dialogue.