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BAKU: About Kosovo events, or there is no place for peacekeeping for

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  • BAKU: About Kosovo events, or there is no place for peacekeeping for

    About Kosovo events, or there is no place for peacekeeping forces in
    Azerbaijan

    19 February 2008 [13:10] - Today.Az

    What will the Azerbaijani diplomacy take from the recent events around
    Kosovo, considering modern realities on the Karabakh negotiations?

    Kosovo's independence is an unquestioned precedent for Armenians
    of the former Nagorno Karanakh Autonomous Region. The differences
    between the conflicts, their history and stage of development have
    nothing to do with it. Only the facts of forced alteration of borders
    of the state on the OSCE area are a precedent. If one exception from
    the OSCE Security Constitution, that is the Helsinki principle. can
    be made-why not make two or three exceptions?

    In the light of Kosovo's being a precedent for Nagorno Karabakh,
    the Prague congress on which talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia
    have been held since 2004, seems even more inappropriate for us.

    The well-known essence of the Prague process is as follows: Azerbaijan
    agrees to a postponed referendum on the status of Nagorno Karabakh,
    places international peacekeeping forces on its territory and then
    Armenia starts gradual withdrawal of forces from the occupied lands
    around the former Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Region.

    It was Azerbaijan's mistake from the very beginning to consider
    itself as a side, which has all chances for success. Indeed, high
    economic growth rates at the cost of oil and temporary growth of its
    geopolitical significance turned country's head. It seemed to us that
    we live in a static world where the international law is always for
    the territorial integrity and that in 10-15 years we will be able
    to get rid of the commitments, regarding referendum on the status of
    Nagorno Karabakh.

    Yet the recent events in Kosovo show that it will not be easy to
    get rid of the commitments which are undertaken so carelessly. This
    is primarily connected with the issue of peacekeeping forces, which
    deprived Serbia of the last physical and political opportunity to
    prevent the declaration of independence by Kosovo.

    As is seen, the peacekeeping forces have been deployed in Kosovo by
    the countries, which recognize territorial integrity of Serbia, with
    the formal agreement of Belgrade. Even Azerbaijan has been keeping its
    contingent there. But the peacekeeping forces turned into an obstacle,
    which Serbia was not able to remove, when Albanians declared their
    independence.

    And now let's imagine what would happen one day if Serj Sarkisyan or
    Levon Ter-Petrosyan adopts a plan, which is now being sold to us by
    the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairman and which has already been bought
    by Azerbaijan as to the deployment of peacekeeping forces.

    The further scenario is quite gloomy. Peacekeeping forces are deployed
    in the conflict area with Baku's agreement. Yerevan gradually
    withdraws its forces from five occupied regions and perhaps even
    from seven. It has deliberately been stimulating and supporting
    ethnic tensity in Nagorno Karabakh for the whole 10-15 years. Then
    Armenians hold referendum on independence. If the Kosovo independence
    does not turn into a disaster for Europe by that time, Europe will
    make Azerbaijan recognize the results of such a referendum even if
    it is not envisioned by agreements and Azerbaijan will be in the same
    position as democratic Serbia is now.

    What is a solution? If official Baku is not able to stop this
    deceptive Prague process, it can at least change its position on
    the peacekeeping forces. If we have not been in need of peacekeepers
    to maintain ceasefire regime for the last 14 years, why do we need
    peacekeepers in period of execution of a peace agreement?
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