KARABAKH: OPPOSITION LAWMAKER CLAIMS RUSSIA’S ROLE IN LATEST BORDER TENSIONS
KARABAKH | 03.07.14 | 11:02
Photolure
By SARA KHOJOYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
The protracted Nagorno-Karabakh conflict again appears to be in
the focus of attention of the world’s powers. While some analysts
in Armenia are convinced that the recent more intensified ceasefire
violations at the Karabakh-Azerbaijani and Armenian-Azerbaijani borders
have been directly or indirectly provoked by Russia, the United States
and France (that co-chair the OSCE Minsk Group along with Russia)
have called for re-opening talks on Karabakh as soon as possible.
The number of border incidents has increased considerably in the past
month or so, while during the past seven days Azerbaijan opened fire
at residential areas on the Armenian side in the northeastern province
of Tavush. A 12-year-old Armenian child was wounded in the Berd area
on Monday.
Member of Parliament, former Foreign Minister of Armenia Alexander
Arzumanyan believes that the Azerbaijani side’s activities are
conditioned by Russia’s interests.
“The recent developments show the processes by which they try to draw
us and Azerbaijan into another war. I don’t think that Armenia is
interested in the resumption of hostilities, as we have no problem to
solve, and certain forces, some players are trying to plunge us into
war, which can have very dangerous consequences,” Arzumanyan told a
press conference in Yerevan on Wednesday.
The opposition lawmaker added that in his opinion Azerbaijan is not
ready for a full-scale war either. “The moment Azerbaijan feels it
can solve the problem in the battlefield, it will certainly go to
war. So, there are forces that direct Azerbaijan, and whether they
do it directly or indirectly is another matter.”
According to Arzumanyan, since the signing of the truce in 1994 Russia
has always wanted to deploy its troops in the region, and the current
border incidents also serve this purpose.
“As the experience of our 200-year-old relationship shows, at some
point Russia starts treating us like small change for solving
its geopolitical problems,” argued the former foreign minister,
stressing that “with a clear conscience Russia is ready to discuss
Nagorno-Karabakh’s future in the context of Azerbaijan’s joining the
Customs Union.”
The foreign ministers of Armenia and Karabakh met in Yerevan on
Wednesday and also discussed the activities of Azerbaijan in the
recent period, describing them as “targeted provocations”. They said
these actions “once again prove Azerbaijan’s unconstructive stance.”
Meanwhile, Arzumanyan called on Armenian diplomats to draw the
international community’s attention to these incidents. Remarkably,
there is already international reaction to these events as France and
the United States have again called for renewed peace talks between
Armenia and Azerbaijan.
In particular, Jen Psaki, the US State Department spokesperson,
called on both sides to redouble their efforts at the negotiation
table during a press briefing July 2.
“Obviously, inflammatory rhetoric and statements run counter to the
principle of reducing tensions, and so we certainly think that that
damages the peace process, and that’s why we’re encouraging them
to redouble their efforts,” Psaki said, expressing hope that “the
presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan will accept French President
Hollande’s invitation to hold a summit in Paris as soon as possible.”
A similar appeal was made by the French Foreign Ministry spokesman
during a question-and-answer session: “France urges the parties to
refrain from statements that are contrary to confidence building and
calls the parties to active work.”
http://armenianow.com/karabakh/55764/armenia_karabakh_azerbaijan_alexander_arzumanyan