G8 heavyweights urge solution to Karabakh conflict

By Asbarez | Saturday, 11 July 2009

Picture above: (Left to right) France President Sarkozy, Russia President Medvedev and US President ObamaL'AQUILA, Italy (Combined Sources)-In joint statements released on the final day of the Group of Eight summit, the Presidents of the US, France and Russia called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and pledge their countries' commitment to lasting peace in the region.

"We, the Presidents of the OSCE Minsk Group's Co-Chair countries: France, the Russian Federation, and the United States of America affirm our commitment to support the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan as they finalise the Basic Principles for settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," the statement said.

"We are instructing our mediators to present to the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan an updated version of the Madrid Document of November 2007, the Co-Chairs last articulation of the Basic Principles," continued the statement.

"We urge the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan to resolve the few differences remaining between them and finalise their agreement on these Basic Principles, which will outline a comprehensive settlement," concluded the statement.

Among the principles called for in the Madrid Document, and which the United States, Russia and France reaffirmed Friday, were "the return of the territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani control and an interim status for Nagorno-Karabakh providing guarantees for security and self-government."

It also embraced "a corridor linking Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh" as well as a future determination of the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh "through a legally binding expression of will" and the right of "internally displaced persons and refugees to return to their former places of residence."

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and his Azeri counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, are scheduled to meet in Russia on July 17 to continue negotiations.

Below is the statement:

We, the Presidents of the OSCE Minsk Group's Co-Chair countries France, the Russian Federation, and the United States of America, affirm our commitment to support the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan as they finalize the Basic Principles for settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

We are instructing our mediators to present to the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan an updated version of the Madrid Document of November 2007, the Co-Chairs' last articulation of the Basic Principles. We urge the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan to resolve the few differences remaining between them and finalize their agreement on these Basic Principles, which will outline a comprehensive settlement.
Fact sheet


The ministers of the U.S., France, and Russia presented a preliminary version of the Basic Principles for a settlement to Armenia and Azerbaijan in November 2007 in Madrid.

The Basic Principles reflect a reasonable compromise based on the Helsinki Final Act principles of Non-Use of Force, Territorial Integrity, and the Equal Rights and Self-Determination of Peoples.

The Basic Principles call for inter alia:

  • return of the territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani control;
  • an interim status for Nagorno-Karabakh providing guarantees for security and self-governance;
  • a corridor linking Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh;
  • future determination of the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh through a legally binding expression of will;
  • the right of all internally displaced persons and refugees to return to their former places of residence; and
  • international security guarantees that would include a peacekeeping operation.

The endorsement of these Basic Principles by Armenia and Azerbaijan will allow the drafting of a comprehensive settlement to ensure a future of peace, stability, and prosperity for Armenia and Azerbaijan and the broader region.

 

Picture above: (Left to right) France President Sarkozy, Russia President Medvedev and US President Obama

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