Azerbaijan calls on EU to help settle Karabakh conflict

Azerbaijan calls on EU to help settle Karabakh conflict

ITAR-TASS, Russia
May 18 2004

BRUSSELS, May 18 (Itar-Tass) – Azerbaijani President Ilkham Aliyev
has called on the European Union to take part in the settlement of
the Karabakh conflict.

“The Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OCSE) makes an important contribution to the problem’s
solution. We consider it useful to attract the European Union, the
Council of Europe and other European organizations for the conflict’s
settlement efforts to achieve tangible results,” Aliyev said at a news
briefing after the talks with the President of the European Commission,
Romano Prodi.

Prodi expressed the readiness to join the work for a settlement of the
Karabakh conflict. He pointed out that the EU was greatly concerned
about the absence of peace in the region.

The EC leader said the union was ready to invigorate the settlement
process and put forward concrete proposals. The EU is also prepared
to step up economic cooperation with Azerbaijan under what has been
termed the “ring of friends and neighbors” strategy, expanded recently
to encompass Azerbaijan.

Alyiev described the recent meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian
foreign ministers as “very important for pursuing a peaceful dialogue”.

“We do not want talks for the sake of talks, we do not a simulation
of talks,” he said. “We seek a meaningful discussion with Armenia of
new themes and problems that can yield concrete results in settling
the conflict in line with international law and territorial integrity
of Azerbaijan,” Aliyev said.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Emil Lazarian

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia . See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia.” - WS