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British expert: â€œProfiles of solution to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict were determined and international community increased pressure on the sidesâ€

09 December 2009 09:21 (UTC +04:00)

Helsinki. Kamala Ramazanova â€“ APA. â€œIf there is no any progress in the solution to Nagorno Karabakh conflict, the development of Turkish-Armenian relations will be difficultâ€, British Chatman House expert Neil McFarlane told APA. He said the protocols demanded ratification, which created difficulties both in Armenia and Turkey. McFarlane said the â€œgenocideâ€ issue was also a serious obstacle on the way of normalization. The expert said he generally positively valued the process. In his opinion, profiles of solution to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict are clear now. â€œThe international community increased pressure on the sides to accept this plan of solution. The question is about that will this pressure lead to the positive results?â€

McFarlane considers that main duty in the achievement of peace in Nagorno Karabakh is determination of the status of this territory. He reminded that Azerbaijan promised maximum autonomy, which included local police, military forces, independent local tax system, establishing of special relations with Armenia, rights for migration control and international guarantee for that. â€œI donâ€™t think that Azerbaijan will accept this concept of autonomy, but if the sides are interested in the agreement, it is possible to find different optionsâ€.

The expert said he didnâ€™t expect fomentation of conflict in Nagorno Karabakh. Touching upon the Western interests in the South Caucasus, McFarlane said Americans are interested much more in the relations with Russia and they didnâ€™t want it to be an obstacle for the developments in the Caucasus. He said Europe also had no united approach to the region.