Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

The most important reason for lack of progress in solving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the Armenian government's uncompromising attitude.

The comments were made by Chairman of the Eurasia Economic Relations Association Hikmet Eren in Baku on February 24.

The Azerbaijani lands and Nagorno-Karabakh which were occupied by Armenia in 1992-1993 remain one of the major issues of the South Caucasia that have not been solved for nearly twenty years, Eren told reporters.

He also drew attention to Armenia's territorial demands from Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey from the beginning of the Soviet Union's disintegration process till the end of the 1980s.

"Following the collapse of the USSR, Armenians openly expressed their claims for the mountainous part of Karabakh," Eren said. "In 1988, they implemented a decision made by a unilateral referendum for independence, and immediately after that the Turks in the Nagorno-Karabakh region were forced to migrate. The Soviet-backed Armenian occupation began afterwards, and Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions were occupied. A ceasefire agreement was signed between the parties in Bishkek on May 5, 1994," he said.

Evaluating the attitude of international organizations on the settlement process, Eren called it ineffective.

Eren also noted the UN Security Council's failure to implement the decisions that have been made regarding this issue and the ineffectiveness of the OSCE Minsk Group which was authorized by the UN Security Council to solve the issue in a peaceful way and is co-chaired by Russia, the U.S., and France

Eren stressed that the parties have met 14 times between 2008 and 2012 at the level of the heads of state, although no progress has been made in the talks.

Eren believes that in order to achieve a permanent solution, Armenia's expansionist efforts need to be prevented, and Azerbaijan's territorial integrity should be provided without any pre-conditions.

Armenia occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territories, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions, after laying territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor that caused a brutal war in the early 1990s. Long-standing efforts by the US, Russian, and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far.

As a result of Armenia's military aggression, over 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed, 4,866 were reported missing, almost 100,000 were injured, and 50,000 were disabled.

The UN Security Council has passed four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal from the Azerbaijani territory, but they have not been enforced to this day.