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Karabakh Follows In Kosovo's Steps

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  • Karabakh Follows In Kosovo's Steps

    KARABAKH FOLLOWS IN KOSOVO'S STEPS
    by Ivan Preobrazhensky, Aleksei Bausin

    DEFENSE and SECURITY
    May 21, 2008 Wednesday
    Russia

    Bringing in 500,000 Armenians, Karabakh authorities intend to get
    international recognition

    WILL NAGORNO-KARABAKH ARRANGE ITS OWN TALKS WITH AZERBAIJAN?; Official
    Stepanakert maintains that it itself should negotiate peace settlement
    with Azerbaijan.

    Nagorno-Karabakh President Bako Saakjan is convinced that
    Nagorno-Karabakh should participate in the pace settlement talks with
    Azerbaijan. "Independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic is the principal
    warring side. It has the priorities analogous to those of another
    countries," Saakjan said. All negotiations have been conducted by
    Armenia these last 14 years. Nagorno-Karabakh only participated in
    the truce signing in 1994.

    Gegam Bagdasarjan, the only oppositionist deputy on the Karabakh
    parliament, suspects that the Nagorno-Karabakh authorities might
    have been upset by rumors that Armenia was ready to give part of the
    Karabakh territories to Azerbaijan to settle the matter.

    Not even Armenia has established diplomatic relations with
    Stepanakert. Azerbaijani settlements in Karabakh are in ruins,
    Armenian thrive with help from diasporas abroad.

    The army comprises approximately one sixth of the population. Economic
    revival is undeniable. "Stability will culminate in a doctrine of
    maximum density of the population," Karabakh Prime Minister Araik
    Arutyunjan said. According to official estimates, the population of
    Nagorno-Karabakh stands at under 150,000 men, density of population
    amounting to one tenth of the Armenian. The government is out to
    stabilize the population at 500,000. Population inflow is double
    the outflow. The birth rate is about 14 births per 1,000 people. A
    denser population may help with the problem of recognition "as it
    did in Kosovo" (to quote Arutyunjan).

    Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandjan believes that status of
    Nagorno-Karabakh should be determined at a referendum. "Moscow stands
    for a compromise reached with help from foreign intermediaries,"
    Leonid Slutsky of the International Committee of the Duma said.
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