Armenian Presidential adviser Sergey Shakaryants told VK's Armenian correspondent about the role Russia and Iran may play in a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
- The Russian and Azerbaijani presidents have just met in Sochi. What could’ve been on the agenda except officially announced issues? It’s clear the parties are now thinking over President Medvedev’s latest proposals concerning the Karabakh conflict.
- It’s a good question to ask, whether the letters sent by President Medvedev to the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders contained one and the same text. As for me, I believe the text was quite different. If President Aliyev replied immediately and send his reply with the head of the foreign ministry, President Sargsyan replied two days after. One possible explanation is that President Medvedev asked his Azerbaijani counterpart to remove 10 issues added on the agenda in Kazan. It’s not clear what the Azerbaijani response could have been. The fact that the Armenian President responded two days after shows that the Armenian position depends on the line that Baku chooses. If Azerbaijan stops coming up with new demands, then peace talks may resume.
- What are the prospects of such talks?
- I believe that the co-chairs of the OSCE will make several more proposals by the end of the year. Then they will probably wait for some time, showing that the Armenians and Azerbaijanis have to think these proposals over. If Azerbaijan hadn’t signed the document prohibiting any use of force, the mediators would try to prevent further bloodshed.
- What was the Russian President trying to say when he noted that the Five-day War should have taught Azerbaijan and Armenia a good lesson?
- I think President Medvedev was trying to show the US and the EU, which forced Saakashvili to start a military campaign, that they made a mistake and that they shouldn’t repeat such a mistake in Karabakh. I believe they understood President Medvedev. Moreover, the upcoming elections in several countries make any war dangerous and thus improbable.
- Iran has announced several times that it’s interested in a peaceful solution to the conflict. Still, it’s not involved in the process.
- That’s natural, because Iran isn’t a member of the OSCE, so it will never be involved in the process. At least in the talks held in the framework of the OSCE peace initiative. At the same time Iran is a powerful state and very influential in the region. That’s why the OSCE co-chairs promised to inform the country about how the peace talks proceed. Even the Bush administration promised the Iranian authorities that it wouldn’t interfere in the conflict. The current administration continues this policy. Iran and the United States do not trust each other. That is why US policy in the South Caucasus is based on its policy towards Iran.
Interview by David Stepanyan, Yerevan. Exclusively to VK
