OSCE SAYS MUTUAL CONFIDENCE NEEDED TO SOLVE KARABAKH CONFLICT
news.az
Sept 6 2011
Azerbaijan
‘It is clear that war will not resolve this conflict’.
‘The issue is not so much whether the parties need to show good faith
and confidence in the OSCE but rather, I think, that whether they have
confidence in each other to solve the Nagorno Karabakh problem’, the
OSCE Chairmanship’s special representative for protracted conflicts
Giedrius Cekuolis said in his interview to RFE/RL.
Cekuolis said what is very preoccupying is that the Armenian and
Azerbaijani governments are not preparing their societies for the
possibility of a negotiated solution of the conflict.
‘We think that the sides need to take measures to reduce tensions. My
representatives have visited the region, myself, my foreign minister,
everyone, so we are just looking and stressing the need for political
will for a negotiated settlement of the conflict, strengthening the
cease-fire regime, investigating skirmishes on the Line of Contact,
for example, removing snipers a little bit, you know, and establishing
a hotline, which is quite necessary and easy to do between local
field commanders.
And then probably also continue with confidence-building measures. We
are living in the 21st century and so only a negotiated solution
of the conflict is possible. I’m not an expert on military things,
but it is clear that war will not resolve this conflict’.