Baku rejects proposal to meet separatists in Europe /UPDATED/

Baku/31.07.23/Turan: A meeting between Baku and Khankendi representatives was supposed to be held on 1 August in Bratislava. At least, such a meeting was lobbied by Western circles.

However, as Turan has learnt from informed sources, the Azerbaijani authorities refused to meet with the separatists.

It is to remind that earlier, Baku twice invited representatives of Karabakh Armenians for a dialogue on reintegration to the Azerbaijani capital. However, the Armenians ignored these invitations, after which President Ilham Aliyev said that they would not be invited to negotiations anymore and that they should disband the separatist structures and obey the laws of Azerbaijan. Only in this case they can count on amnesty. -06В-

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2023 July 31 (Monday) 11:55:53

A meeting between Baku and representatives of Khankendi may take place in a European country

Baku/31.07.23/Turan: "A potential meeting between Baku and representatives of Khankendi is being organized in one of the European countries, possibly in Bulgaria, as historian Arif Yunusov, who lives in the Netherlands, told Turan. According to Yunusov's sources in European organizations, American mediators are playing a significant, albeit lesser-known role in the Karabakh process, insisting on a meeting on neutral ground. While the Azerbaijani side is reportedly unhappy with the prospect of the meeting, they find it challenging to overtly decline the American mediators' involvement.

The United States has been using various levers to exert pressure on Baku and even suggested the idea of a road through Aghdam. Notably, they have encouraged Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to fulfill Baku's requirements. However, the meeting's success remains uncertain due to potential stumbling blocks.

Yunusov points out that the Armenians now have a convenient excuse to avoid negotiations with Baku. The recent arrest of Vagif Harutyunyan in Lachin has complicated matters, as Harutyunyan has close ties with Samvel Babayan, whom Azerbaijani media considers to be in favor of a peaceful resolution to the conflict with Baku. Harutyunyan's previous support to Babayan adds complexity to the situation.

Chairman of the United Motherland Party (Khankendi), Samvel Babayan, has been vocal about accepting the consequences of defeat in the 2020 war. However, during the first Karabakh war of 1991-1994, he led illegal armed groups of Karabakh Armenians that engaged with the which together with the Armed Forces Armenia   in actions that resulted in the destruction of Azerbaijani settlements, violence, and ethnic cleansing."