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OBAMA SHOULD CONVENE MEETING OF ARMENIAN, AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENTS
Trend, Azerbaijan
July 11 2014
By Sara Rajabova
Long delays in resolving Nagorno-Karabakh conflict have given rise
to the ideas of changing the format of talks which are currently led
by the OSCE Minsk Group.
The recent escalation of violence in the contact line of Armenian and
Azerbaijani troops has raised new concerns as ceasefire violations
caused loss of life and injuries not only among the military, but
also among civilians.
The ongoing peace process concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group has yielded no results to date. In
addition, the negotiations have stalemated as there has been no
breakthrough in the talks since beginning of 2014.
Senior Fellow at American Foreign Policy Council, Professor Stephen
Blank said the U.S. president should pave the way for a meeting between
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliyev analogous to that at Camp David in 1978 to broker a settlement.
U.S. President Jimmy Carter brokered the negotiations between Israel
and Egypt in 1978 that led to a historic peace agreement between the
two countries.
Blank said Barack Obama should be ready to offer the necessary
mediation and funding as well as peacekeepers either through NATO or
the UN to bring both sides to peace.
He further noted that there is no viable negotiating forum for a
peace process to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict at present.
"I don't see anything that could remotely be called a peace process.
Instead, there are many armed clashes between both sides. There is no
viable negotiating forum for a peace process at present," Blank said.
Regarding some views on replacing OSCE Minsk group with a neutral
moderator, Blank said, the U.S. and France will have to play that role.
Earlier, British Member of Parliament, Lord Kilclooney said OSCE
Minsk group should be replaced by a neutral mediator.
Touching upon the participation of civil society in the conflict
resolution, Blank said at present, there is no effective civil society
in either country to promote a solution.
"Indeed I would argue that the war's continuation for all these years
has been a major obstacle to the development of civil society in
both Armenia and Azerbaijan. A peaceful resolution is a necessary
precondition for the appearance in both countries of genuinely
democratizing trends in society, economics, and politics," Blank said.
Armenia occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally
recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent
regions, after laying territorial claims against its South Caucasus
neighbor that caused a brutal war in the early 1990s. Long-standing
efforts by U.S, Russian and French mediators have been largely
fruitless so far.
The UN Security Council has passed four resolutions on Armenian
withdrawal from the Azerbaijani territory, but they have not been
enforced to this day.
From: A. Papazian
Trend, Azerbaijan
July 11 2014
By Sara Rajabova
Long delays in resolving Nagorno-Karabakh conflict have given rise
to the ideas of changing the format of talks which are currently led
by the OSCE Minsk Group.
The recent escalation of violence in the contact line of Armenian and
Azerbaijani troops has raised new concerns as ceasefire violations
caused loss of life and injuries not only among the military, but
also among civilians.
The ongoing peace process concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,
mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group has yielded no results to date. In
addition, the negotiations have stalemated as there has been no
breakthrough in the talks since beginning of 2014.
Senior Fellow at American Foreign Policy Council, Professor Stephen
Blank said the U.S. president should pave the way for a meeting between
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham
Aliyev analogous to that at Camp David in 1978 to broker a settlement.
U.S. President Jimmy Carter brokered the negotiations between Israel
and Egypt in 1978 that led to a historic peace agreement between the
two countries.
Blank said Barack Obama should be ready to offer the necessary
mediation and funding as well as peacekeepers either through NATO or
the UN to bring both sides to peace.
He further noted that there is no viable negotiating forum for a
peace process to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict at present.
"I don't see anything that could remotely be called a peace process.
Instead, there are many armed clashes between both sides. There is no
viable negotiating forum for a peace process at present," Blank said.
Regarding some views on replacing OSCE Minsk group with a neutral
moderator, Blank said, the U.S. and France will have to play that role.
Earlier, British Member of Parliament, Lord Kilclooney said OSCE
Minsk group should be replaced by a neutral mediator.
Touching upon the participation of civil society in the conflict
resolution, Blank said at present, there is no effective civil society
in either country to promote a solution.
"Indeed I would argue that the war's continuation for all these years
has been a major obstacle to the development of civil society in
both Armenia and Azerbaijan. A peaceful resolution is a necessary
precondition for the appearance in both countries of genuinely
democratizing trends in society, economics, and politics," Blank said.
Armenia occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally
recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent
regions, after laying territorial claims against its South Caucasus
neighbor that caused a brutal war in the early 1990s. Long-standing
efforts by U.S, Russian and French mediators have been largely
fruitless so far.
The UN Security Council has passed four resolutions on Armenian
withdrawal from the Azerbaijani territory, but they have not been
enforced to this day.
From: A. Papazian