Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

What Makes Kosovo & Eritrea Better Than Karabakh?

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • What Makes Kosovo & Eritrea Better Than Karabakh?

    WHAT MAKES KOSOVO AND ERITREA BETTER THAN KARABAKH?
    by Yuri Simonjan

    DEFENSE and SECURITY
    March 5, 2008 Wednesday
    Russia

    Post-Soviet self-proclaimed republics intend to achieve international
    recognition

    WHAT NAGORNO-KARABAKH COUNTS ON IN CONNECTION WITH THE KOSOVO
    PRECEDENT?; An interview with David Babajan, Chief of the Main
    Directorate of Information of Nagorno-Karabakh.

    Kosovo set a precedent for non-recognized republics of the post-Soviet
    zone. Here is an interview with David Babajan, Chief of the Main
    Directorate of Information of Nagorno-Karabakh.

    Question: Recognizing Kosovo as a sovereign state, the Western
    community all but denies other self-proclaimed states similar
    acknowledgement. Is it all right to draw parallels between Kosovo
    and Nagorno-Karabakh?

    David Babajan: The Kosovo precedent is unique because it amends
    international law and introduces something new into nations' right
    to self-determination. Regardless of all claims that Kosovo is not a
    precedent, this episode will certainly have far-reaching consequences.

    The United States recognized Kosovo as a sovereign state promoting
    its own geopolitical interests. The situation with Nagorno-Karabakh
    is different. Our foreign policy may be well-balanced, democratic
    institutions may develop and so on, but all of that will be a waste
    of time and energy unless our actions suit movers and shakers. We
    should use this period when we are not recognized as a sovereign
    state to develop our state. The day will come when we are recognized.

    Question: Necessity to return Stepanakert to the Azerbaijani-Armenian
    negotiations is speculated on, these days. What will its return to
    the talks mean?

    David Babajan: The negotiations were trilateral until the middle of
    the 1990s. They are bilateral now, and they entered a blind alley. It
    will take Stepanakert's involvement to do away with the deadlock.

    Unfortunately, Azerbaijan is not ready for it and it is unlikely to
    be ready for it in the foreseeable future. Direct negotiations with
    Stepanakert will signify recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh's status
    and Baku does not want it. It knows better because there are other
    ethnic minorities in Azerbaijan that may get ideas and follow in
    Nagorno-Karabakh's steps. That is why the Azerbaijani leadership views
    the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as a purely territorial conflict and not
    as something to be regarded from the standpoint of nations' right to
    self-determination. Hence its thoroughly non-constructive stand. Broad
    autonomous rights or actual recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh's
    independence may encourage other peoples in Azerbaijan.

    Question: A joint Azerbaijani-Armenian delegation visited
    Nagorno-Karabakh not long ago. Is it correct to treat it as the
    beginning of reconciliation and return of fugitives?

    David Babajan: We feel no animosity with regard to the Azerbaijani
    people. Before coming to the return of fugitives, however, some other
    steps should be taken. Psychological and historic reconciliation is
    necessary, and that will take permanent contacts at the level of
    non-governmental organizations and political structures. There is
    a legal nuance here as well. Let's say the fugitives do come back
    but where will they go? To the jurisdiction of what state? Political
    issues should be addressed first.

    Question: But the threats to conquer Nagorno-Karabakh again and subdue
    it by sheer strength of arms made by Baku every now and then do not
    exactly improve matters, do they?

    David Babajan: They do not, indeed. We are sorry to hear these
    threats. Still, impressive economic parameters and fantastic
    military budgets do not guarantee victory in war. Another war in
    Nagorno-Karabakh is a matter of prestige for Baku but for Stepanakert
    it is a matter of life and death. This asymmetry of the motives may
    play an instrumental part, you know. There are purely military and
    geopolitical nuances as well, and they preclude a military solution
    to the problem. If the war begins, however, it will be on a scale
    larger than the one before. It will mean a new bloodshed and new
    victims. Nobody needs it. That's what our stand comes down to.

    Question: Is independence from Armenia possible as well?

    David Babajan: Researchers usually view the Yerevan-Stepanakert
    connection from the economic standpoint. Stepanakert does depend
    on Yerevan from this angle. On the other hand, there is more to the
    general idea of sovereignty than this. It cannot be measured.

    Nagorno-Karabakh is an important ethnic and political component
    for Armenia. The Armenians lost their statehood more than once,
    their territories were subjected to ethnic purges on more than one
    occasion. The last one took place in the Ottoman Empire in 1915. All
    of that developed a complex of victims in the Armenians resulting in
    assimilation abroad. After all, it is more preferable for people to
    identify themselves with winners, say with the Americans.

    Nagorno-Karabakh is different. It offered an alternative.

    Nagorno-Karabakh restored our faith in our own strength. Hence its
    importance in the pan-Armenian world.

    Question: Does Nagorno-Karabakh count on sovereignty or on becoming
    a part of Armenia?

    David Babajan: We fought for reunification but this movement eventually
    evolved into the struggle for complete sovereignty which is more
    attractive from the standpoint of economic development. In any case,
    Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh have a lot in common, the degree of
    integration is quite high. What counts, however, going back is no
    longer an option. There are various options we may choose among, but
    not a single one of them stipulates being a part of Azerbaijan. As
    for whether Nagorno-Karabakh becomes sovereign or a part of Armenia,
    time will show.
Working...
X