A statement issued by the heads of state and government participating in the meeting of the North Atlantic Council in Wales on Sept. 5 was harshly criticized by official Yerevan.
Nalbandian
The statement had expressed support for “the territorial integrity, independence, and sovereignty of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and the Republic of Moldova.” However, similar to NATO declarations in previous years, it made no mention of the right to self-determination.
The statement called for settlement of conflicts “based upon [the aforementioned] principles and the norms of international law, the UN Charter, and the Helsinki Final Act,” and urged all sides “to engage constructively and with reinforced political will in peaceful conflict resolution, within the established negotiation frameworks.”
Armenia’s foreign minister Edward Nalbandian criticized the statement, saying that certain expressions in it present a “generalized and selective approach, which doesn’t reflect the proposals of the [Minsk Group] Co-Chairs,” despite the fact that “two of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs are also NATO Members.”
Nalbandian stressed that such an approach “harms the negotiation process as well as undermines regional stability and security. It also contributes that Azerbaijan is losing more and more the sense of reality and—with its militaristic rhetoric and policy—opposes the approach of the international community.”
“I would like also to note that such approach to the principles contradicts the international law, the UN Charter and the Helsinki Final Act,” Nalbandian concluded.
Sarkisian, Aliyev, and Kerry Meet in UK
A tripartite meeting was held on Sept. 4 in Newport between Armenian President Serge Sarkisian, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. The meeting, initiated by the U.S., focused on Nagorno Karabagh.
Reiterating that there is no alternative to the peaceful settlement and ruling out any attempt to escalate the situation, Kerry urged the parties to find mechanisms for easing the tensions and develop confidence-building measures between the sides, according to a press release issued by Sarkisian’s office.
Stressing the need to continue the talks in the OSCE Minsk Group format, John Kerry expressed readiness to possibly back up the search of ways for conflict resolution. At the same time, he underscored that the two sides need to show strong commitment and political will on the way to peaceful settlement.
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