By Victoria Panfilova, a Nezavisimaya Gazeta columnist exclusively for Vestnik Kavkaza
Russian President Vladimir Putin met his Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan at the Bocharov Ruchey Residence in Sochi on Sunday. The leaders discussed the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. No miracle happened at the negotiations, the sides proposed no solutions to the conflict. Considering the tensions in the conflict zone preceding the negotiations, the statements by the presidents about the need for a peaceful solution have become especially significant.
“Armenia and Azerbaijan have the goodwill to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh peacefully. I am glad to state that the Azerbaijani president drew special attention to the need to resolve the problem peacefully and you [president of Armenia] have just spoken about it. This is indeed the most important thing because there is no bigger tragedy than the deaths of people,” Vladimir Putin said at a trilateral meeting with the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia. The Russian head reminded that the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh “fell to us from the past, as a heritage of the Soviet Union.”
“We need to show tolerance, wisdom, respect towards each other to find a solution. Any complicated situations can be resolved if there is goodwill. I think that the goodwill of the Azerbaijan and Armenian people exists,” noted Vladimir Putin.
Vladimir Putin’s guests agreed.
“None of the analysts expected a miracle at the Sochi meeting but the best possible result of the negotiations can still be considered to have been achieved. Firstly, the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia sat behind the negotiation table, although there were doubts about it until the very last moment, considering the exceptionally high level of tensions demonstrated by the sides lately. Most importantly, it was clear after the negotiations that escalation of conflict into a war phase would be evaded. In this aspect, the peacemaking efforts of Russia have certainly accomplished the goal,” said Yulia Yakusheva, the executive director of the North-South Center for Political Analysis, in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza.
In her opinion, Russia is interested in a peaceful resolution of the current phase of the Karabakh standoff. “Stability in the Trans-Caucasus Region near the Russian borders is an important condition for the national security of Russia. Armenia will soon join the Eurasian Economic Union, so the Karabakh issue has caused a negative impact on the Eurasian integration process,” noted the expert.
Armenia, on the other hand, joins the Customs Union without Karabakh. “Nagorno-Karabakh has nothing to do with it, as stated by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan publicly many times,” said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the end of the meeting of the Russian, Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents. The decision could have been made with Astana’s participation. The Russian minister arrived in Sochi from Kazakhstan.
“Azerbaijan has traditionally strong economic ties with Russia, including ties in the energy sector. In the context of the strengthening sanction regime, Russia needs to preserve existing agreements. Moreover, the Karabakh problem creates a negative background for the upcoming summit of Caspian cooperation. Finally, it was announced that Russia relies on shipments of vegetable products from Armenia and Azerbaijan in the light of the closing of the Russian market to European suppliers. This provides new opportunities for strengthening the mutually-beneficial economic contacts of Russia with Azerbaijan and Armenia. The fact that the Russian president has organized a dialogue between the sides again proves the high influence of Russia in the region, the confidence of the sides of conflict in the mediating efforts of Moscow. Baku, Yerevan and Moscow have a common rational position: no one wants a war,” said Yulia Yakusheva.
Baku, Yerevan and Moscow do not want a warBy Victoria Panfilova, a Nezavisimaya Gazeta columnist exclusively for Vestnik KavkazaRussian President Vladimir Putin met his Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan at the Bocharov Ruchey Residence in Sochi on Sunday. The leaders discussed the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. No miracle happened at the negotiations, the sides proposed no solutions to the conflict. Considering the tensions in the conflict zone preceding the negotiations, the statements by the presidents about the need for a peaceful solution have become especially significant.“Armenia and Azerbaijan have the goodwill to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh peacefully. I am glad to state that the Azerbaijani president drew special attention to the need to resolve the problem peacefully and you [president of Armenia] have just spoken about it. This is indeed the most important thing because there is no bigger tragedy than the deaths of people,” Vladimir Putin said at a trilateral meeting with the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia. The Russian head reminded that the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh “fell to us from the past, as a heritage of the Soviet Union.”“We need to show tolerance, wisdom, respect towards each other to find a solution. Any complicated situations can be resolved if there is goodwill. I think that the goodwill of the Azerbaijan and Armenian people exists,” noted Vladimir Putin.Vladimir Putin’s guests agreed.“None of the analysts expected a miracle at the Sochi meeting but the best possible result of the negotiations can still be considered to have been achieved. Firstly, the presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia sat behind the negotiation table, although there were doubts about it until the very last moment, considering the exceptionally high level of tensions demonstrated by the sides lately. Most importantly, it was clear after the negotiations that escalation of conflict into a war phase would be evaded. In this aspect, the peacemaking efforts of Russia have certainly accomplished the goal,” said Yulia Yakusheva, the executive director of the North-South Center for Political Analysis, in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza.In her opinion, Russia is interested in a peaceful resolution of the current phase of the Karabakh standoff. “Stability in the Trans-Caucasus Region near the Russian borders is an important condition for the national security of Russia. Armenia will soon join the Eurasian Economic Union, so the Karabakh issue has caused a negative impact on the Eurasian integration process,” noted the expert.Armenia, on the other hand, joins the Customs Union without Karabakh. “Nagorno-Karabakh has nothing to do with it, as stated by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan publicly many times,” said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the end of the meeting of the Russian, Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents. The decision could have been made with Astana’s participation. The Russian minister arrived in Sochi from Kazakhstan.“Azerbaijan has traditionally strong economic ties with Russia, including ties in the energy sector. In the context of the strengthening sanction regime, Russia needs to preserve existing agreements. Moreover, the Karabakh problem creates a negative background for the upcoming summit of Caspian cooperation. Finally, it was announced that Russia relies on shipments of vegetable products from Armenia and Azerbaijan in the light of the closing of the Russian market to European suppliers. This provides new opportunities for strengthening the mutually-beneficial economic contacts of Russia with Azerbaijan and Armenia. The fact that the Russian president has organized a dialogue between the sides again proves the high influence of Russia in the region, the confidence of the sides of conflict in the mediating efforts of Moscow. Baku, Yerevan and Moscow have a common rational position: no one wants a war,” said Yulia Yakush
