Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

An Azerbaijani expert believes that the status quo for the Armenians is the solution to the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh problem.

Political Analyst Mubariz Ahmadoglu, the director of the Center for Political Innovations and Technology said in a press conference on August 18 that the concept of "settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict" is universally accepted.

“Certain political forces in Armenia, including the ones who participated in the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, regard the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as settled. In other words, they accept the status quo as a solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. In reality nobody in the world considers the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as settled," he said.

Ahmadoglu stressed that Armenia has occupied Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions of Azerbaijan.

“If the Armenian leadership seeks to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict within the OSCE Minsk Group, it means Yerevan does not consider the conflict to have been settled,” Ahmadoglu said.

He went on to say that any debates in Armenia about the principle of self-determination of peoples are nothing more than self-deception.

“There is not a single line about the ‘right’ of ‘people of Artsakh’ and ‘Karabakh Armenians’ for self-determination in the numerous documents and statements of the organizations, which expressed attitude towards the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” Ahmadoglu said.

Referring to the principle of self-determination in international law, Armenians have tried to establish their second state in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani officials repeatedly stated that it would never allow for an Armenian state on its historical lands.

In addition, this contradicts the rules and norms of the international law. This plan is baseless, as there is no precedent in the world on establishing two states by one nation.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since a lengthy war in the early 1990s that displaced over one million Azerbaijanis, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.

Ahmadoglu further noted that when the Armenians started the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, they were very confident in their abilities and were supported by large powers, where the Armenian lobby was strong in those times.

However, Azerbaijan in that period was in a completely different situation, according to the analyst. He said the war in Nagorno-Karabakh negatively affected Azerbaijan and the country was in an information blockade.

Within 27 years of the commencement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Armenia has turned into a graveyard of desires and investment of Armenians worldwide as a result of its aggressions.

Ahmadoglu considers that as long as the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not settled and Armenia doesn’t withdraw from occupied Azerbaijani territory, the problems that have emerged from this conflict for Armenia and Armenians worldwide will grow.

To save the state and government, Armenia should stop its aggressive policy and agree to peace with its neighbor, he believes.

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Sara Rajabova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @SaraRajabova

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