The interlocutor of Radar Armenia is international expert Shahan Gantaharyan.
– How would you evaluate the tripartite meeting in Brussels, as a result of which Armenia and Azerbaijan announced to recognize each other’s territorial integrity, indicating the dimensions of the specific territory?
– The Brussels statement about the Washington meetings and the resulting reports should be considered. Washington-Brussels coordination according to the formula of the collective West is explicit. Washington declares that it is ready to support and participate in further negotiations, and Brussels says there will be frequent meetings through its mediation. This is parallel to the Moscow initiatives and a counterbalancing process. Referring to the UN Charter and the Alma-Ata Declaration left an open door for suspending the status of Artsakh and considering it outside the composition of Azerbaijan. Checking the digits closes that exit.
– Various conflicting comments were made to that statement. What does this mean? Is this how Armenia recognized Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan?
– There is still no signed document, but the digital verification of the territory and its recognition is tantamount to accepting Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan. It can be interpreted that the mention of 29,800 km² by Azerbaijan implies the recognition of Syunik or the exclusion of the extraterritorial corridor. The issue of enclaves remains unclear. Brussels statements will become meaningless when Azerbaijan speaks about eastern Zangezur or the Zangezur corridor. In any case, recognizing territorial integrity by numbers is a severe blow to the Artsakh problem. Azerbaijan welcomed the Brussels process and statements.
– Prime Minister Pashinyan announced several meetings that will take place shortly. What does this momentum of negotiations indicate? What can we expect?
– This momentum does not depend on the conflicting parties but concerns geopolitical competition. The “Collective West vs. Russia” game has heated up, and each side is recording a duty point. The regional process is proceeding with the “mediation for mediation” formula. Therefore, this activity will not lead to any agreement.
– The foreign ministers will meet in Moscow today, and a meeting of the countries’ leaders is also expected shortly. After the European and American platforms, I would also like to comment on those meetings in Moscow.
– Moscow once again hardened its statements against the collective West. According to Moscow, the West wants to remove Russia’s allies from it. And in terms of negotiations, Moscow insists that the process is based on tripartite documents, and there is no agreement beyond them.
The negotiation delay will likely continue.
