Azerbaijani expert: Armenia's provocations may lead to new phase of Karabakh war

Statement by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian is a special case, which fits into the overall picture, that the Armenian diplomats are beginning to engage in something other than the actual negotiation process, Azerbaijani political expert Eldar Namazov said commenting on Armenian minister’s remarks accusing Azerbaijan of terrorism and taking unconstructive position in Nagorno-Karabakh talks.

"Of course, this could be attributed to an emotional background caused by suicide of Armenian saboteur in Azerbaijani captivity. But I am sure that only emotions are not main point here. The reality is that after the actual collapse of the negotiation process, the atmosphere around the negotiations and around the OSCE is deteriorating due to objective reasons and tension is growing every day,” Namazov added.  

"The rigidity of the statements and the aggravation of the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh conflict are inevitable. It is inevitable, because diplomatic negotiations stalled again due to actions of the Armenian side," he said.
 
"In my opinion, this is the most dangerous of all deadlocks, because earlier there were some hopes for the use of a new approach in the negotiation process. There was a package option, then a phased option, and then an attempt to make a synthesis of these two approaches. Now the negotiation process on Karabakh needs just one thing - to reach an agreement based on an updated version of the Madrid Principles," the expert noted.
 
“As you know, Azerbaijan adopted the final version of the document while Armenia has refused to do so. The question is what will be the next? There is no any clear answer to this question. The mediators have no answer to this question either. What if the fantasy co-chairs of the OSCE is exhausted as they themselves admit and it is no longer possible to come up with something new? Therefore, there is a growth of tension in the front line, increasing Armenian military provocations, shootings, the militarization of the region and at the root of it all is Yerevan’s refusal to support the updated Madrid principles and the inability of the co-chairs to come up with something new, something different from what was used for the last 17 years," Namazov said.

"This is the most serious threat and challenge that the conflicting parties and mediators face now. It is no coincidence that there are provocations in Armenia such as putting a bill on recognition of the separatist “Nagorno Karabakh Republic” to vote exactly now. Of course, this is done with the consent of Yerevan. All this will lead to a new war or a new phase of hostilities. And this is the result of Yerevan’s refusal to support the updated Madrid principles," political expert stated.
 
"If OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs cannot offer anything new, as they themselves admit it, we can expect only worsening of the situation, heightened tensions and growth of military provocation on the part of Armenia, what we observe in lately," Namazov emphasized.


/Day.Az/