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Araz Azimov: Azerbaijan is ready for flexibilities and compromises, but within the framework of commonly recognized principles of international law

08 June 2011 08:46 (UTC +04:00)

Baku. Habil Suleymanzadeh â€“ APA. â€œWe read with great attention the text of the joint statement of three presidents of France, Russia and the US. This statement demonstrates the level of commitment of leaders of the countries co-chairing the Minsk Group of OSCE,â€ Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Araz Azimov said while commenting on Deauville statement made by the Presidents of Minsk Group Co-Chair states on 26 May, 2011, APA reports.

Deputy Foreign Minister says the statement invites the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia to take further steps and efforts for elaboration of principles of the settlement. Azerbaijani position is well-known. We base ourselves on the principles of the Helsinki Final Act according to which the use of force against the territorial integrity of a state in any form is unacceptable. And therefore, occupation of territories and acquisition of territories by force is to be rejected firmly and one-meaningly. Due to these very principles internationally recognized borders of states are to remain unchanged if there is no other agreement.

Araz Azimov notes that Azerbaijan respects all principles of the Helsinki Final Act and recognizes that the right of people to self-determination can be implemented only in conformity with the principle of territorial integrity of a state. â€œTherefore proceeding from these principles Azerbaijan expects that the settlement of the conflict will provide withdrawal from the occupied territories, return of population, normalization of life, peaceful coexistence of Azerbaijanis and Armenians in NK region, and the future political process of defining the self-rule status for both communities of NK region within the territorial integrity framework of Azerbaijan. We do not want more, but we shall not agree with the less. We are ready for flexibilities and compromises, but within the framework of commonly recognized principles of international law.

Once more to repeat that Azerbaijan does not consider its territorial integrity as a subject of any negotiations. Self-rule status can be and we hope will be discussed at a later stage with participation of both communities of NK â€“ Azerbaijani and Armenian living side by side in the region. Through this way we hope we shall be able to come to an agreement with the Armenian side. We use all possible efforts for peaceful settlement of this conflict and we agree with the observations of three presidents of the co-chair countries that the current status-quo on the territories occupied by the Armenian forces is unacceptable and we shall join our efforts to theirs (co-chairs) in changing this situation to the better one. We expect, of course that these three nations leading the negotiations will use maximum to see the Helsinki Final Act principles observed as we described earlier. If those efforts succeed, then we together with three co-chair countries will be ready to register success.

Time has passed but still Azerbaijan maintains its interest, motivation and patience in this very hard process of negotiations. But it seems that hardness of these talks has nothing in common with objective criteria and reasons but more caused by factors of subjectivity and internal political difficulties inside Armenia. We shall not allow the Armenian side to further abuse the right of Azerbaijani nation to live within its own territory including its Nagorno Karabakh region. At the same time we are ready to embrace our Armenian citizens in NK region together with the Azerbaijani ones.

Unfortunately, we observe Armenian attempts of misreading the principles of international law and further abusing them in the effort to bridge un-bridgeable and to find in international law a comfort for occupation of Azerbaijani lands. Unfortunately, we also observe an attempt of the Armenian side to further delay return of territories, to keep some territories hostage to further political issues and rejection of return of Azerbaijani community to NK region, which speaks about the real intentions of the Armenian side. On such a basis a compromise can not be reached.

We hope that international community and mainly the OSCE will not let the principles of Helsinki Final Act be attacked and abused further and we count for support of the OSCE in this very protracted process of settlement.â€