Levon Ter-Petrosyan: Karabakh Conflict Can Only Be Solved in Stages

In Armenia there is one problem - it is the Karabakh conflict and resolution of all the others depends on its settlement. On December 17th at the congress of the party Armenian National Congress this was said by the Chairman of ANC, Armenia's first President Levon Ter-Petrosyan.

"After the settlement of the Karabakh conflict, the Armenian-Turkish relations will be normalized automatically, even the next day," said Ter-Petrosyan.

With regard to options for resolution of the Karabakh conflict, the ANC Chairman said no other options exist except the gradual solution of this problem.

"What is now on the table of negotiations on the Karabakh settlement is a phased version of the solution of the problem. In fact, to date, on the table is the same proposal on mutual concessions and settlement, as in 1997. This option is to cede some territory in exchange for the assignment of Artsakh’s internationally recognized interim status, and the question of the final status should be left for the future and a peacekeeping force should be deployed on a secure line of contact of Karabakh and Azerbaijani forces. That's the whole question.

 Do not believe in any fairy tales. I even have reason to believe that today's resolution of the conflict provides a lower status than in 1997,” said the first President of Armenia. Ter-Petrosyan said the laws of the jungle do not act in the world today, “therefore now there is no other conflict resolution option, but to make mutual concessions.”  -02D-