Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijan's key principle in the settlement of its Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with Armenia is maintaining the territorial integrity of the country, First Deputy Chairman of Azerbaijan's Parliament, Ziyafat Asgarov, said on May 23.

"We have expressed our opinion in this regard and once again declare that the main principle for us is the principle of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country," Asgarov told journalists.

He was commenting on the statement by Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian that his country is ready to sign a document on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict entitled "Six Principles".

"I do not know what principles he was referring to," Asgarov added.

Asgarov stressed that only after ensuring Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and sovereignty can any other principle be discussed.

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. Russia, France and the U.S. - co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - have long been working to broker a solution of the conflict, but their efforts have been largely fruitless so far.

Peace talks are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles, also known as Basic Principles. The document envisions a return of the territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani control; determining the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh; a corridor linking Armenia to the region; and the right of all internally displaced persons to return home.

Director of the Institute of Political Studies of the Academy of Public Administration under the President of Azerbaijan, political expert Elman Nasirov told Azernews that it is impossible to accept two of the six principles. Nasirov was speaking about the updated Madrid principles.

He said the first one, as Nalbandian insists, implies holding a referendum in Nagorno-Karabakh region and it would have legally binding international consequences.

"The result of 'elections' which rule out the participation of the Azerbaijani community is obvious, and in fact, it would mean separating Nagorno-Karabakh from Azerbaijan," Nasirov said.

He said the other principle which Armenia supports is determining a transitional legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh until a referendum and recognition of this status by the international community.

"However, this interim status can't be of a lower level than its current de-facto status. At least, the current status hasn't been recognized by any state, even by Armenia itself. But they want to give legal power to this (interim) status, which cannot be accepted in any way. Therefore, the negotiations continue to remain in a deadlock," Nasirov says.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesman Elman Abdullayev told the local press that the deployment of Armenian troops in the occupied territory of Azerbaijan is the biggest obstacle to the resolution of the long-standing Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

He said the actual presence of the armed forces of Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is at the core of the conflict.

According to Abdullayev, in order to advance the negotiation process, the Armenian side must begin a withdrawal of its troops from the occupied lands.

"This will provide an opportunity to advance the peace process and determine the question of predictability of the situation. It will also create conditions for establishing communications, economic development and improving the welfare of the whole region, as well as provide Armenia with the possibility to use the potential of cooperation with Azerbaijan," Abdullayev said.