KARABAKH STATUS QUO 'NOT SUSTAINABLE,' SAYS TOP U.S. OFFICIAL

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KARABAKH STATUS QUO 'NOT SUSTAINABLE,' SAYS TOP U.S. OFFICIAL

 

Armenialiberty.org

http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24365813.html

Oct 20 2011

 

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns urged a greater "sense

of urgency" for the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on

Thursday, saying that continued deadlock in Armenian-Azerbaijani

peace talks would be fraught with serious security risks.

 

Ending a visit to Yerevan, Burns also said that the United States is

continuing to press Turkey to normalize its relations with Armenia.

 

"It's obvious to all of us that there is no military solution to this

[Karabakh] conflict," he told journalists. "And it's also obvious,

it seems to me, that the status quo is not sustainable."

 

"Therefore it's important to approach this challenge with a sense of

urgency," he said.

 

Burns gave no indications that Washington will now seek a larger role

in the negotiating peace and push harder for an Armenian-Azerbaijani

peace deal. "I would simply re-emphasize the commitment of the United

States to doing everything that we can to help bring about a lasting

peaceful settlement," he said.

 

Russia, which co-chairs the OSCE Minsk Group with the U.S. and France,

has been the most active player in the Karabakh conflict mediation

in recent years. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has hosted about

a dozen meetings between his Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts.

 

But the latter have so far failed to iron out their differences on the

basic principles of a peaceful settlement put forward by the three

mediating powers. The impasse is fuelling growing fears of another

Armenian-Azerbaijani war.

 

Karabakh was high on the agenda of what Burns called "excellent and

productive" talks with President Serzh Sarkisian and Foreign Minister

Edward Nalbandian held on Wednesday. The U.S. official discussed the

unresolved dispute with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev in Baku

on Tuesday.

 

Burns said he also discussed with the Armenian leaders the stalled

process of normalizing Armenia's relations with Turkey. "We appreciate

Armenia's commitment to normalization of relations with Turkey,"

he said. "We support the Turkey-Armenia protocols [signed in 2009]

and hope that they will be ratified, creating a better future for

both countries."

 

Burns declined to comment on Yerevan's threats to formally annul the

protocols if Ankara continues to make their parliamentary ratification

contingent on Karabakh peace. He said only that Washington believes

both sides should implement the normalization deal "as quickly as

possible."

 

"We continue to encourage our partners in Turkey to move in that

direction," he added.

 

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton reportedly pressed the Turkish

leaders to drop the Karabakh linkage when she visited Istanbul in

July. However, the Turkish government remains adamant in linking the

two issues.

 

Echoing statements by other U.S. diplomats, Burns further stressed

the importance of the proper conduct of Armenia's next parliamentary

and presidential elections due in 2012 and 2013 respectively.

 

"Since 2012 is an election year, we discussed [with Sarkisian] the

importance of establishing an electoral environment conducive to

free and fair elections," he said. "This means not only what happens

on election day but what happens in the wider democratic process,

including encouraging vibrant and diverse media so that citizens can

make well-informed independent choices."

 

http://xecutrix.usc.edu/news/msg395542.html

 

Quite the opposite. If both parties agree that there is no “military solution” to the problem, why not accept the “status quo”? Isn’t that the best proof for sustainability?

Besides, freedom for Artsakh means security for Baku and respectively free flow of fossils to the West.

If we apply the same approach to Turkey, than you will see the ugly face of the State Department. The illegal border between Turkey and Armenia has been established as a matter of “status quo” after United Snakes’ ally Turkey, committed Genocide against Armenians.