Azernews.Az

The OSCE Minsk Group’s mediating mission in resolving the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno Karabakh has failed to yield fruit, according to an International Crisis Group (ICG) official.

"The attempts to settle the conflict through the Minsk Group have failed so far," Crisis Group’s Europe Program Director Sabine Freizer told Armenian newspaper Haykakan Zhamanak. "The influence of Medvedev, Sarkozy, Obama [the presidents of the co-chairing countries – Russia, France and the United States] and Clinton on negotiations is not very convincing. Therefore, I think we are facing a quite complicated situation with the negotiating process."

Freizer also criticized President Nicolas Sarkozy’s recent statement that France would take adequate steps if Turkey does not recognize the alleged World War I-era genocide of Armenians by the end of 2011, which drew a terse response from Ankara. She said such a statement was "a wrong diplomatic move" for a mediating country.

According to Freizer, despite the lack of progress on Karabakh settlement, the European Union would not be able to replace the Minsk Group, but could contribute to building confidence between the conflict parties.

"A milestone in Nagorno Karabakh conflict resolution is reaching agreement on the six main principles and further discussions on related details."

Freizer said Azerbaijan and Armenia have struck common grounds on these principles, but the details’ remaining to be agreed upon is impeding progress in the peace process. She said progress should not be expected in the next two years, adding that it was therefore important to facilitate contacts between the two countries on all levels.

The Karabakh conflict emerged during the last few years of the Soviet Union. 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory, including the Nagorno Karabakh region, has been under Armenian occupation since the two South Caucasus republics signed a precarious cease-fire in 1994 following a brutal war.

Peace talks are underway on the basis of the Madrid principles, a peace outline proposed by the mediators. The Madrid Document covers a return of the Armenia-occupied territories surrounding Nagorno Karabakh to Azerbaijani control, a future determination of the region’s legal status and the right of internally displaced persons and refugees to return to their homes.