Russian minister plays down Azerbaijani fears

The historic diplomatic protocols between Turkey and Armenia aimed at establishing full diplomatic relations pose no harm to any third party, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigoriy Karasin said, implicitly referring to Azerbaijan's concern that the accords will hinder a solution to the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

“Both Armenia and Turkey are our friends, so we are interested in establishing a neighborly atmosphere between them,” Karasin said in a wide-ranging interview published on Tuesday in the daily Republic of Armenia.

He said that the improvement of Armenian-Turkish relations would invigorate economic ties, which in turn would benefit citizens of both countries. “Settling relations between Yerevan and Ankara will help to reduce tension and promote peace, security and stability in the Caucasus. Moreover, nothing in the Armenian-Turkish accords can be interpreted as harmful to a third party,” Karasin said. Azerbaijan said the key deal risked raising tensions in the region if it goes ahead before a dispute over an Armenian-backed enclave inside Azerbaijan is solved. Turkey says any rapprochement with Armenia should run parallel to resolving the Karabakh dispute – a demand Armenia repeatedly rejected.

When asked about Russia's position on the Karabakh peace process, Karasin said: “We see our role as to assist the settlement process by helping the sides find mutually acceptable solutions to key issues, but without dictating any formulas to the sides from the outside.” Karasin said Azerbaijan and Armenia themselves bear responsibility for settlement of the conflict.

Active mediator

“Russia has been an active mediator in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict since the beginning of the peace process. Moscow is now carrying out these functions on a multilateral basis, working with France and the United States as co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – the main international forum seeking a political solution to the Karabakh conflict,” he said. Karasin added that his country is also mediating through bilateral contacts with its partners in Yerevan and Baku.

Karasin said that Russia is willing to support any solution acceptable to both sides.

"Armenian President Serge Sarkisian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met seven times in 2008-2009 and four tripartite meetings were held involving the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian presidents. Despite the existing differences, the sides made significant progress towards agreement on the basic principles. Moscow is ready to take all possible steps to move this process forward."

Karasin was upbeat on Russian-Armenian relations overall. "Regular, trusted political dialogue at a high level and elsewhere between Russia and Armenia gives our contacts a good dynamic," he said. "All practical issues that arise in Russian-Armenian ties are resolved constructively. Our collaboration is becoming more balanced and harmonious, which is a sign of its maturity. Cooperation is expanding and improving not only in the traditional political and military spheres, but in the economic, humanitarian and inter-regional areas.”