Foreign

The Head of State said he shared his ideas about this issue with public community and expressed the position of Azerbaijan many times. “But the events are rapidly developing and of course, I would like to express my ideas about the current stage of the negotiation process and official position of the government of Azerbaijan as well. We noted many times that the conflict could be solved only on the basis of international law. Four resolutions adopted by UN Security Council must be fulfilled, the occupation forces must be withdrawn from all of the occupied lands and Azerbaijani citizens – refugees and internally displaced persons must return to the occupied lands, including Nagorno Karabakh. The status of Nagorno Karabakh can be determined only after that and this status can be granted only within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan will never agree with any status out of that. No one will recognize Nagorno Karabakh as an independent subject upon our disagreement”.

“After return of our citizens to the occupied lands the temporary status of Nagorno Karabakh can find its solution”, said the President and emphasized that the status could be only within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. According to the Head of State, in very beginning and throughout the negotiation process, the position of Azerbaijan was that Nagorno Karabakh can receive the highest autonomous status in the world. “We are loyal to this position and in distinction from Armenians we never conducted ethnic cleansing operations and we never had such intentions. Sometimes we hear very ridiculous statements from Armenia that if Azerbaijan’s proposal is accepted there will be no Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh. Let them not to judge us by their own standard. Azerbaijani people never discriminate other nations. In distinction from Armenia, we are not a mono-state. All peoples and representatives of all nations are living in our country as a family. This is our feature, our mind. Armenia may be only country in the world, I mean non-island country, that no other nations except Armenians are living there, despite that present Armenia was established in the historic lands of Azerbaijan and most of the population of Iravan Khanate was Azerbaijanis. This is our historic land, but Azerbaijanis were expelled from present Armenian by different ways and methods. Not only Azerbaijanis, but representatives of other nations too were expelled from Armenia, killed, oppressed or Armenia created such conditions for them that they were forced to leave that country. Therefore Azerbaijan never conducts ethnic cleansing policy against any one and will never do that”.

The President said if Armenia accepted the proposals which reflected the norms of international law, Azerbaijani and Armenian communities would live together in Nagorno Karabakh and they must do that. “Living of Azerbaijanis there will prove the historic justice and it will completely be in accordance with the norms of international law. Armenia must express its position in present stage. We were expressing our position to the heads of states and governments of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries for long years. Armenia is artificially prolonging the negotiations. Armenia is not sincere in the negotiations and delaying the negotiations under the different pretexts. It returns back to the coordinated issues and repeatedly brings them to agenda that it can win the time. They consider that in due course, this “status-quo” will be strengthened and ten or twenty years later there will be useful opportunities to legitimate illegal Nagorno Karabakh regime. We informed the Minsk Group ambassadors and heads of states and governments many times that we have doubts on that and these doubts were created not by nonentity. They have backgrounds that Armenia is delaying negotiations trying to turn them into endless process as if it participates in the negotiations and therefore it needs not to impose sanctions against them. They attempt to accuse Azerbaijan in delaying the negotiations. We approach such stage that Armenia’s insidious and double-face policy can not be continued. We are in such stage that they have to respond the proposals of the Minsk Group co-chairs. The three Minsk Group co-chair countries elaborated the proposal on the basis of renewed Madrid principles and submitted it to both sides. Of course, Azerbaijani diplomacy played a great role in forming of this proposal and giving it current form. If we look at the early phase of the process, which was called the “Prague process”, we can see that there were many points which didn’t satisfy us. There were very dangerous points and mechanisms which threatened Nagorno Karabakh to separate it from Azerbaijan. As a result of our efforts in the past five years within the framework of Prague process, and I think, as a result of the co-chair’s new views, we are discussing today the proposals elaborated on renewed Madrid principles. This was a great process. Armenia tried to leave this process by the different ways in the different periods. They made themselves ridiculous sometimes leaving the process, sometimes interrupting it for unknown reasons and not informing anyone about that. We see that they are ready to do everything, even to make themselves ridiculous. They are ready to introduce themselves as a country with non-constructive position that only to achieve endless process of negotiations and to make the world calm that the negotiations are going on and there is no war. Let them to negotiate if they want that. We already reached that line that both Armenian and Azerbaijani sides must express their positions. We expressed our position. Azerbaijan officially expressed it position in the negotiations with Armenian president in Munich last November and in the last trilateral meeting in Sochi wit participation of Russian president Medvedev that it accepts the proposals made on the basis of renewed Madrid principles and it contains few unsettling points for Azerbaijan. There can be few exceptions and this proposal can be considered as a background for a peace agreement. Unfortunately Armenia has not expressed its position so far and it has not expressed any position in the past two months, and as we were informed, the issues they added to this proposal will return us back to the beginning of the process. It can not be accepted by us or by the OSCE Minsk Group. We were promised that there will be very serious work with Armenia to assure them to accept the new proposals. We are in this stage.
Of course we are analyzing the situation, ongoing processes in the region and expecting Armenia to give a positive answer to the proposals of the three countries – Russia, France and America, in this case we will hold negotiations actively, the new stage of the negotiations will begin, work will begin on the concrete agreement. If they do not accept this proposal, I think the negotiations will lose their meaning, it is inadmissible for us to hold negotiations just for imitation.

The head of state mentioned that he had said they would not hold negotiations for imitation.
“We will hold the negotiations by the time we have hope that they will produce results. If we see there is no hope, the negotiations should be stopped and of course a new stage will begin. It is still early to say what that stage will consist of. Anyway, we are ready for any scenario. We are making our preparations so that we can take steps in accordance with the situation. I consider and want to underline once more that in the present stage it is obvious for all, including the co-chairing countries that the Armenian side is upsetting the negotiations. If earlier the co-chairing countries wanted to ignore it, now it is impossible to do it. It is obvious for them that the Armenian side is upsetting the negotiations. In this situation I am sure that serious work should be done with the Armenian side. Stimulating Armenia, giving them hope and ignoring their aggressive policy may upset the negotiations. Therefore I consider that under the present decisive stage all countries, especially Minsk Group co-chairing countries should be very sensitive. Those who are not familiar with the situation closely should try to study the situation in the region, at least read about the ongoing historical processes in the region from the books, learn the history of the past twenty years. I do not want to blame anybody, if they do not know, they should learn, come to conclusion, take right steps. But such a political support is given to Armenia that it may refuse the negotiations after all. Is it right to leave Nagorno Karabakh out of account and discuss other issues? It is quite wrong, mistaken and contradicts Azerbaijan’s national interests. What position can we demonstrate to those who demonstrate the position contradicting our national interests?! How can we protect, support the interests of those who violate our interests? No matter whether countries are big or small, everything is mutual in the world. It is not we who invented it. The world community is functioning basing on this. The economic potential, military power, population or territory can not play role in the bilateral relations. If so then the UN should stop functioning. All countries have equal rights and all countries establish and should establish equal relations. Azerbaijan is a country accepting only this approach. Of course, how can Azerbaijani public accept it, if our interests are left out of consideration, the occupation of our territories is ignored and efforts are made to lead the aggressor state out of the hard economic situation?! Why aren’t pressures exerted on the aggressor state?! Why does Azerbaijan demonstrate almost the greatest constructiveness in the negotiations, while Armenia upsets the negotiations?! We are observing the efforts aiming to lead Armenia out of this hard situation. Why should Turkey-Armenia borders be opened and Armenia should take a breath?! First of all, the opening of Turkey-Armenia borders is the affair of Turkey and Armenia. No one should interfere in it, neither we, nor the others. Though some countries consider that they should interfere in everything. These are the relations between the two countries. Let these two countries solve the relations. Of course, while solving the relations these countries will take into account the ongoing processes in the region, history and historical relations. What do the sides that are unaware of anything, the ongoing processes in the region want to achieve by pressure, blackmail and slander?! This policy openly contradicts Azerbaijan’s interests. Azerbaijani state is taking and will take adequate steps in its policy.

As regards the process of negotiations, I want to reiterate: we still hope that the Armenian side will give a positive answer to the proposed variant. If it is so, we will hold peace talks more actively, a new stage, positive stage can be opened in the negotiations,” he said.

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