Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
July 9, 2004, Friday
SOURCE: Novye Izvestia, July 7, 2004, p. 4
by Oleg Kasimov
MOSCOW IS NOT TO BE PASSED OVER BY TURKEY AS THE MAJOR MEDIATOR IN
THE ARMENIAN-AZERBAIJANI CONFLICT SETTLEMENT
His negotiations with Armenian opposite number Vardan Oskanjan over,
Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Lavrov announced that Moscow was
not to be passed over by Turkey as the major go-between in the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.
“Russia may become guarantor of the mutually acceptable agreement,”
Lavrov said receiving Oskanjan in Moscow (this was his first official
visit to the capital of Russia). Lavrov emphasized as well that
Armenia remains Russia’s major military-political ally in the
Caucasus.
Lavrov’s statements are supposed to cool down politicians in Ankara
and NATO strategists who tried to seize the initiative in settlement
of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict at the recent NATO summit in
Istanbul. Official Yerevan in the meantime did not object to the
signals from Istanbul. “Turkey may become a link connecting the
Caucasus and Europe,” Oskanjan said. “This is the only NATO country
bordering on all three republics of the southern part of the
Caucasus.”
The Kremlin is aware of the advances towards NATO made by Armenia, a
member of the CIS Collective Security Treaty. Yerevan agreed to
participate in the NATO exercise in Azerbaijan this autumn and
suggested the territory of Armenia for Exercise Cooperative
Associate’2005.
The negotiations between Lavrov and Oskanjan became a warning to Baku
as well. Foreign minister of Russia pointed out the absence of
“alternatives to the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict.”
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev frequently says lately that
“Azerbaijan’s patience is running out” and that “Azerbaijan does not
rule out a military solution to the problem of Nagorno-Karabakh.” The
Kremlin sends a message that Russia keeps the military situation in
the region in check and will not permit the existing parity being
wrecked.