The OSCE Minsk Group has held inspections in the Nagorno-Karabakh areas and expresses interest in Armenian initiatives for settling occupied Azerbaijani territories with prisoners. The idea caused shock both in Azerbaijan and foreign expert societies monitoring the area.
Vestnik Kavkaza reported earlier that Armenia is developing a bill on free territories for prisoners. It will soon be presented to the Armenian president and parliament.
Armenia describes as free territories the lands it took from Azerbaijan in the war of1992-1994.
Pushkin Serobyan, Chairman of the Human Rights Organization “23 August, National Alliance”, said that settling prisoners in the area would bring economic benefits.
Andrey Areshev, Deputy Director General of the Fund for Strategic Culture, told Vestnik Kavkaza that he views the initiative as another act of the propaganda war. It is obvious that such actions cannot be realized, because Armenia is formally in a state of negotiations. The co-chairs of the OSCE MG are monitoring settlement in the seven territories. The idea of settling prisoners is chaotic and goes against the will of the Armenian authorities. It is caused by the complicated situation in certain parts of Armenia and overpopulation. But the main reason is socio-economic. In some cases it is the patriotic feelings of the settlers. Areshev concluded that realization of the initiative is impossible.
Ismail Agakishiyev, head of the Center for Caucasus Studies of the Russian State University for the Humanities, noted that such measures would not contribute to a settlement of the Azerbaijani-Armenian conflict and would make it more complicated instead. Looking at the problem in a wider view, they can indeed move 100,000 or 150,000 people to the area but what would they get?
Armenia is in a difficult economic state, citizens are leaving the country for a better life beyond their fatherland. And this is a result of the authorities who have been in power for 20 years. Would it not be more beneficial for Armenia to take steps towards lifting the blockade of Turkey and Azerbaijan, rather than aggravating the tense socio-economic situation?
From a legal aspect, separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh have some sort of independence, which fails to explain the reasons for settling its citizens there. It shows that Armenia does not conceal the occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Such actions cause doubts about whether Armenia really wants to start peace talks with its neighbor and whether it respects international decisions, including the demands of the OSCE Minsk Group. The OSCE MG was chosen as a trustworthy mediator because it consists of authoritative states, Agakishiyev concludes.
