NEW AZERBAIJAN PARTY

Q: The Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia had a meeting in Paris on October 27, initiated by the French President. How do you think can this meeting be considered a step forward in the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict?

A: Because of Armenia`s aggressive policy the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has not yet been resolved. Efforts to find a solution to the dispute have unfortunately yielded no results so far. Azerbaijan wants the dispute to be solved peacefully in compliance with international legal norms and principles. But unlike Azerbaijan, Armenia has made every possible efforts to preserve the status-quo, and remained committed to its unconstructive position. At the same time, the Armenian leadership pretends to be a well-wisher in order to mislead the international community.

As we know mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group, the foreign ministers and presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia have held a number of meetings initiated by the co-chairs of the Minsk Group, the Russian President and also as part of international events.

The most recent meeting took place in Paris. It was initiated by French President Francois Hollande. So the whole Azerbaijani society is interested – whether this meeting can be regarded a step forward in the solution. There are also those who want that this format changes, others want war. But I think this approach is wrong. We want peace.

I think that the fact that such meeting started to be held in a more frequent manner means that we are moving forward on a right path. And this path can lead us up to the settlement of our most painful problem.

Q: Several international organizations have officially recognized in their documents that Azerbaijan`s lands are under occupation. How important is this?

A: More than twenty years that passed since the signing of the ceasefire agreement show that the settlement of the dispute cannot be reached only through talks and meetings. We need concrete steps. The international community has given its legal assessment of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. The United Nations Security Council, the Organizations of Islamic Conference, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Council of Europe, the European Parliament have adopted resolutions and other documents recognizing the occupation of Azerbaijan`s lands by Armenia, demanding an unconditional and immediate withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from Azerbaijan`s occupied lands and the return of Azerbaijani refugees and internally displaced persons to their lands. However, Armenia continues to disregard these documents and resolutions, and remains loyal to its stalling tactics.

The escalation of violence on the line of contact in August was another expression of the Armenian leadership`s unconstructive position.

The forces that support Armenia are not interested in the settlement of the conflict, and want the status-quo to be kept.

Q: Armenia is experiencing socio-economic crisis. Can this force official Yerevan to agree to peace?

A: Ever since gaining independence Armenia has failed to deal with its economic problems and continues to boast little prospects of tackling those issues in the foreseeable future. Such problems as social grievances, unemployment, dwindling foreign investment, outflow of already limited capital and export constraints due to incompatibility of manufactured goods with the European standards are among top persistent issues. The Armenian population is leaving the country. The country is controlled from outside, thanks to external assistance.

Unlike Armenia, Azerbaijan has become the regional leader in terms of both politics, economy, energy and other areas. The country is pursuing an independent internal and foreign policy. Azerbaijan is one of the major suppliers of energy to Europe, which is a crucial fact in strengthening Azerbaijan`s international positions.

All this adds to Azerbaijan`s advantage in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly reiterated that Azerbaijan`s territorial integrity will be ensured. Our position is backed by international law.

Being the regional leader Azerbaijan has managed to isolate Armenia from all economic a, energy and infrastructure projects in the region. And this is the main factor that led up to crisis in Armenia.

Q: The current situation poses a serious threat to regional security. How does this affect cooperation?

A: Apart from being a source of serious threat to regional security and stability, the current situation creates serious obstacles to the emergence of new cooperation platforms in the region. So unless the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is solved, we cannot speak of absolute peace or stability in the region. Because it is impossible to cooperate when your region experiences separatism, occupation and illegal territorial claims. So the OSCE Minsk group must increase efforts to elaborate new, effective mechanisms of finding a just, international-law based solution to the problem. Otherwise, the South Caucasus can become a field of new clashes. The OSCE Minsk Group must apply news mechanisms to force Armenia quit its unconstructive policy of occupation and aggression.

Certainly, Azerbaijan reserves the right to resort to military means if diplomatic efforts give no results. This is the right of Azerbaijan, which is stipulated in international law. And the strengthening of our military power and potential gives us more self-confidence, and this will guarantee the return of our lands in a short period of time.