Gorbachev: Karabakh conflict didn't and doesn't have simple solutionAugust 3, 2021 - 19:35 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict did not have a simple solution during the Soviet period and does not have one now, first president of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev said in a fresh article published on Monday, August 2. “Under [Joseph] Stalin, the multinational state began to shift into a rigid super-centralized unitary system. The center decided and controlled everything. In addition, Stalin and his associates cut the borders arbitrarily, as if expecting that no one could even imagine themselves outside the Union. National issues were pushed deep down, but they did not go anywhere. Acute problems were hidden behind the façade of "the rapprochement of the Soviet peoples", with no one even looking for solutions. Stalin took any national claims and interethnic disputes as anti-Soviet and suppressed them without wasting time on admonitions,” Gorbachev wrote. “I must admit that at first we underestimated the scale and severity of the problem. But when it arose, we could not resort to old methods of suppression and prohibitions. We believed that we had to take a different path, look for thoughtful and balanced approaches, and use methods of persuasion." According to Gorbachev, the conflict has long-standing roots, "It did not have a simple solution then and does not have one now, although they tried to convince me that it could be achieved by redrawing the borders. The country's leadership had a unanimous opinion: this is unacceptable,” the former Societ leader said. He noted that he believed back then that reaching an agreement on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh was the business of Armenians and Azerbaijanis, and the role of the union was to help them in normalizing the situation, in particular in solving economic problems. Top stories The EU does not intend to conduct military exercises with Armenia, Lead Spokesperson for EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano says. A telephone conversation between Putin and Pashinyan before the CSTO summit is not planned, Peskov says. London’s Armenian community has been left feeling “under attack” after the city’s Genocide monument was vandalised. The United States believes there should be an international mission to provide transparency. Partner news | Armenia: Opposition activist transferred to Investigative Committee Activist Samvel Vardanyan has been accused of insulting the lawmaker Hakob Aslanyan from the ruling Civil Contract party. Russia confirms start of withdrawal of peacekeepers from Karabakh The Kremlin has confirmed reports about the start of the withdrawal of Russian peacekeeping forces in Karabakh. France recalls its ambassador to Azerbaijan France on April 16 said it had recalled for consultations the French ambassador to Azerbaijan. Protesters rally as Georgia debates 'foreign agent' bill Georgian critics label the bill "the Russian law", comparing it to legislation used by the Kremlin to crack down on dissent. |