Armenian-Turkish relations not linked to Karabakh process

PanARMENIAN.Net - The October 8 meeting between Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev proved that Armenian-Turkish reconciliation is not linked to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement process, Orinats Yerkir party member Hovhannes Margaryan said.



"Upon completion of the meeting, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs stated that the Karabakh conflict should be resolved in compliance with the right of nations to self-determination and non-use of force and with respect to the principle of territorial integrity," he said.



The ending of the statement diminishes the importance of the principle of territorial integrity, according to Margaryan.



Meanwhile, the statement the Co-Chairs issued on October 9 says,



"The President of Armenia Serzh Sargsian and the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met in Chisinau, Moldova on 8 October at the residence of the U.S. Ambassador. The meeting was organized by the Minsk Group Co-Chairs (Ambassador Yuri Merzlyakov of the Russian Federation, Ambassador Bernard Fassier of France, Ambassador Robert Bradtke of the United States) in the presence of the personal representative of the Chairman-in-Office Ambassador Andzrej Kasprzyk.



This was the fifth meeting between the two presidents in the last ten months and confirmed the positive dynamic of their negotiations. The meeting further promoted elaboration of the Basic Principles for the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. The talks were constructive and serious, including an in-depth, line-by-line discussion of a number of points of the Co-Chairs' proposals.



The presidents asked the Co-Chairs to incorporate the results of the discussion into their proposals in advance of the next meeting between the two."