Armenian expert: Normalizing Armenia-Azerbaijan relations is key to Armenia-Turkey dialogue

Day.Az: At a joint news conference with U.S. President Obama, Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan said that his country is resolute in the issue of the Azerbaijani-Armenian and Armenian-Turkish relations and that Turkey-Armenia normalization is directly related to the Karabakh issue. Do you believe Armenia will change its position after this meeting?

Georgi Vanyan: In order to change position, one needs to have it first. First and foremost, Armenia should act as a subject in order to declare its position or change it. Specifically in this or any other process, one needs to have own political program and a political will to implement this program policies in order to be a subject at least. Unfortunately, Armenia ignores axiomatic laws of politics. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, it has been engaged with criminal romantic adventures and home-grown patriotism.

The only natural result of this is a political capitulation under which it is impossible to avoid externally imposed requirements. Though we have tried hard to have one version for ourselves and for internal use in order to cheat the entire world, today we are obliged to obey the orders step by step.

I have already had a chance to say that normalizing the Armenian-Azerbaijani relations is key to the Armenian-Turkish dialogue. Normalizing Armenian-Azerbaijani relations will not only facilitate the Armenian-Turkish dialogue and help Armenia to get rid of predetermined threat of conflict with Georgia, but will also pave a way for natural development of the entire region.

Normalizing relations with Azerbaijan meets Armenia’s interests. Anticipating "dialogue" and "conflict resolution" imposed upon us we must first make an unprecedented political move by solving all problems with neighboring Azerbaijan. Thus, we will solve the question of good neighborliness and secure world. But the dictated "solutions" can only prolong the ceasefire and deepen hatred.

The Turkish prime minister sharply criticized the OSCE the Minsk Group activities claiming its work is ineffective. In your opinion, how fruitful is the MG’s work?

Activities of the OSCE Minsk Group are fruitless meetings and visits in the Armenian-Azerbaijani public format. They aims only to create an impression of dialogue toasting constantly.

One of Armenia’s current high-ranking officials said with delight, surprise and with great pathos a few years ago that a group of Armenians and Azerbaijanis sat at one table eating, using a knife and fork and toasting peace in St. Petersburg. We have already witnessed numerous times distinguished persons and experts to say that  the Armenian and Azerbaijani youth understand that we all are normal people thanks to various projects. It is strange and sad. But this is reality.   

The Minsk Group is a kind of straitjacket for the parties whose role is to maintain the status quo. The public format acts in the same track by function of government’s outpost for controlling the conjuncture.

Dissatisfaction with policy of the Armenian president, foreign minister in terms of resolving the Karabakh conflict and Armenia-Turkey normalization has increased recently. Armenian public seems to be against the opening of borders with some people demanding the president to step down in case he returns Azerbaijani lands and normalizes relations with Turkey…

Armenia is experiencing hard times today. Adventurous and long-term romantic activity that Armenia’s foreign policy features led to absolute loss of independence and clearly identified long-term crisis in the value system. The terminology "want - not want to" is a vivid evidence. The whole point is that such a "normalization" and "returning lands", or the president’s resignation and stop of the process will actually change nothing. The reassessment is the only way out. This reassessment should take place within Armenia. The country should design  foreign policy and a political program itself.

The Munich meeting between the Azerbaijani and Armenia presidents, which was the sixth year in a year, was welcomed as a positive. The process of settling the Karabakh conflict  intensified after the meeting. How do you assess the meeting? What will be the further development of the "frozen" conflict?

No intensification which lacks a political program can solve the conflict. Backward development imposed by outside forces must not be tailored to the political processes

Do you think the Karabakh problem might be solved next year? How military solution to the conflict is realistic once Armenia refuses to leave Nagorno-Karabakh?

Likelihood of a war, but not a solution to the Karabakh problem, exists today and perhaps will  exist for many years until political processes begin. While they have not begun, the international community will remain a straitjacket for us at best. The Kremlin, elder brother and a strategic partner of Armenia, will hold strings of this straitjacket and will be able to untie them any time.

K. Mammadova