A political settlement of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh is possible, and the proposals of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs in this regard remain on the table, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told an interview with Sputnik, Komsomolskaya Pravda and Govorit Moskva radio stations on Wednesday.
"Of course, a political settlement is possible. The proposals that the co-chairs have been working on and continue to work on remain on the table, their content is already known: this is a gradual, gradual liberation of the areas around Karabakh, while respecting the security guarantees of Karabakh and ensuring reliable communication between Armenia and Karabakh before the final status of Karabakh is determined, " Lavrov said. "I think that it was a blessing in disguise; these sad events should help to activate the political process in parallel with the solution of security issues on earth."
The Russian Foreign Minister also noted that the military of the conflicting parties should immediately organize meetings to coordinate the ceasefire control regime. "When politicians and diplomats announce an agreement to cease fire, the military immediately agree on what specific measures should be taken on the ground in order for this to be successful, and who will observe objectively how the ceasefire regime is implied on both sides," he explained.
Lavrov said that on October 14, by phone, he confirmed to Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov Russia's message to the parties to the conflict in Karabakh about the need for immediate coordination of control over the ceasefire along the military line.
"Our main message is that we still need to meet immediately through the military and agree on the very mechanism for monitoring the ceasefire, which is mentioned in our document, which no one has even started discussing yet," Lavrov said. - "I re-confirmed the relevant signals just half an hour ago, when the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister called me. We send the same message to our Armenian colleagues. I think that this is now the key to a sustainable ceasefire, which affects civilian objects and civilians."
The Russian Federation does not rule out that Russian military observers may be included in the mechanism for monitoring the ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh. "Now, not even peacekeepers [should participate in the verification mechanism], but military observers, they would be enough. We believe that it would be absolutely correct if they were our military observers, but the final word should be with the parties. Of course, we believe that our allied relations and strategic partnership relations will be taken into account both in Yerevan and Baku," the Minister said.
According to him, the mechanism for monitoring compliance with the ceasefire regime should work on the line of actual contact between the forces of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Russia does not share Turkey's point of view on the possibility of a military solution to the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, Lavrov said. "We do not agree with the position voiced by Turkey, which, in fact, President [of Azerbaijan Ilham] Aliyev has expressed several times. There is no secret here, we cannot share the statement that there is a military solution to the conflict and it is acceptable," he said.
Lavrov noted that the Russian side is in contact with Turkish colleagues on the situation in Karabakh.
"I have spoken several times during this crisis with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu. We still maintain our point of view that a peaceful settlement is not only possible, but it is also the only way to ensure a sustainable solution to this problem because everything else will keep the conflict in a somewhat muted state. If there is no long-term political agreement, all the same, once the decisions that were reached by military means will prove their failure, there will still be fighting."
Lavrov added that Russia considers Turkey a close partner, not a strategic ally. "We have never qualified Turkey as our strategic ally. It is a very close partner, and this partnership is strategic in many areas," the Russian Foreign Minister said in response to a question. Lavrov stressed that it is necessary to avoid military clashes when resolving any issues. "Politics in Turkey and in any other direction should be based on reality, and politics should avoid materializing the principle that war is a continuation of politics. This is my deep conviction, although, of course, there are certain situations when aggression is carried out against you, the guns should not be silent," the Minister added.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS