During the April battles for Karabakh and immediately after them Russia completely took the diplomatic initiative in connection with the disengagement of the USA from the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. This is one of the reasons why Europe in general and Germany in particular recognize the leading role of the Russian Federation in peace negotiation process on the Karabakh issue, former US ambassador to Azerbaijan and a former assistant secretary of the state for the South Caucasus, Matthew Bryza, told Fuad Safarov, the ’Vestnik Kavkaza’ correspondent.
Thus, he commented German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s statement at the joint press conference Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev about the leading role of Russia in the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement. One of the reasons that ‘‘immediately following the unprecedented flareup in fighting along the Line of Contact in early April of this year, Russia filled a diplomatic vacuum left by the United States. Hopefully, the meeting in Vienna a few weeks ago in which Secretary of State John Kerry joined Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov with Presidents Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan, marks Washington’s recognition that it must play a more active role at the highest political level if there is to be a settlement of the NK conflict,’’ said the US diplomat.
According to him, it is no surprise that Chancellor Merkel intends to restore normal diplomatic and business relations with Russia. ‘‘Germany is eager to restore normal diplomatic and business relations with Russia and with Russia failing to implement its commitments in the Minsk 2 agreement to deescalate its war in Ukraine, Berlin is probably eager to find other areas in which Russia may be seen as playing a helpful role in conflict mediation,'' Matthew Bryza believes.
At the same time, he urged Baku to seek a balance between the mediators in the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement. "Second, Azerbaijan will forever be Russia’s neighbor, and Russia will always play a major role in developments Azerbaijan, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. The key for Azerbaijan is to use its other friends and partners, especially the United States and France, to ensure a balanced approach to mediating the NK conflict,’’ the US diplomat said.
‘‘Chancellor Merkel is looking for a way to deescalate tension with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after the German Bundestag recognized the ‘Armenian Genocide’ [as the Armenian tragic events in 1915 are covered in Turkey, editor’s note] She is thus looking for a constructive way to link Turkey and Armenia to German diplomacy, but without alienating Azerbaijan,’’ Bryza said.
"As President Obama learned in 2009, it is dangerous to press too hard for improved Turkey-Armenia relations without simultaneously pursuing a breakthrough in the NK mediation process, as this will lead to a breakdown in the NK mediation process. But, pressing for improvement in both diplomatic processes in a way that progress in one reinforces progress in the other is a potential fruitful approach. It sounds as if Chancellor Merkel may be pursuing precisely this line of action,’’ the former US ambassador to Azerbaijan concluded.
