“Heydar Aliyev was a realist. When he raised the issue of Karabakh, he meant only 7 regions without NK. Return of the regions was a priority to him. For his son an agreement with Armenians is more dangerous. To avoid it he Ilham Aliyev keeps on including Nagorno Karabakh in the notion of the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan,” Russian Co-Chair of the OSCE MG for settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict in 1992-1996, Ambassador Vladimir Kazimirov stated in an interview with PanARMENIAN.Net.
Vladimir Kazimirov reminded that all principles fixed in the UN Declaration of 1948 and confirmed by the Helsinki Agreement are of equal value – this also refers to people’s right to self-determination and inviolability of borders. In conflict situations a peaceful agreement is much more important that force. “Moreover, these principles should be developed. The Helsinki Agreement summed up the outcomes of the WWII and outlined the norms of relations between the states. With the existence of various state systems and nuclear weapons any territorial tremor could lead to large-scale hostilities. The 1990-ies brought tectonic changes and force majeur. Collapse of great power like the USSR undermined the magic of the Helsinki formulas,” he remarked.
The Russian diplomat underscored that Heydar Aliyev’s successors excite the militaristic campaign in Azerbaijan and this cripples the moral basis of the society, especially of the young generation. “President Ilham Aliyev himself accelerates the armament race. It’s a pity that the OSCE watches this calmly. If the organization proceeded to the settlement of the conflict it should counteract anything that impedes its peaceful mission,” the former Co-Chair of the OSCE MG said.
