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Of: TT
Published:
February 1 | Photo: Wiktor Nummelin / TT
Foreign Minister Ann Linde (SocDem) has called on the parties to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to resume peace talks. Stock Photography.
The fight for the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh is in its fourth day. Foreign Minister Ann Linde (SocDem) has spoken with both sides, Armenia and Azerbaijan, urging them to stop the violence immediately and resume the peace talks.
The territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan continues since the collapse of the Soviet Union. So far, the parties have defied international calls to lay down their arms.
On Sunday, fighting broke out again in Nagorno-Karabakh. They are described as the worst since the 1990s.
Reports of deaths come from both sides, both civilian and military. Information often cannot be confirmed.
The Nagorno-Karabakh region belongs to Azerbaijan under international law, but it has an Armenian majority and is in practice ruled by Armenians.
Flight stopped
On Tuesday, Ann Linde was scheduled to land in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku. But it was not allowed due to the security situation in the airspace.
The visit to the two countries will take place later.
In any case, he was able to hold two-hour talks with the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister, Jeyhun Bayramov, and the Armenian ditto, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan.
– My important message was that we must immediately stop the fighting and return to the negotiating table. And it can only be managed through the OSCE’s coordinating chairmanship, says Ann Linde.
TT: How did you react to the message?
– Right now, of course, it’s a very exciting situation on both sides. At the same time, they point out that I, as a member of the OSCE Troika, and several others have asked them to do so. I hope it plays a role.
Worrying situation
At the end of the year, Sweden will assume the chairmanship of the OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe).
Before the talks with the Foreign Ministers, Ann Linde coincided with the three OSCE Coordinators, from the United States, Russia and France, and the Special Envoy for the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh.
The course of the last few days worries Ann Linde. Without the resumption of negotiations, the conflict runs the risk of “developing in a very negative way,” he fears.
– They (the foreign ministers) have different opinions about who started the conflict and about the fundamental principles that are applied.
TT: Do you have any feeling today about whether the conflict will go away or continue?
– It is not possible to know, but on previous occasions there have been intense combats that subsided after several days.
Local knowledge
On Thursday, Ann Linde is still traveling to the volatile South Caucasus, where Europe meets Asia. The trip goes to Georgia.
– I look forward to hearing your detailed knowledge of the situation (in Nagorno-Karabakh) and the assessments that Georgia makes as a neighboring country. How do you see being able to continue on the path of the OSCE? Is there a way that we have not tried to win the acceptance of both countries?
After this week’s information gathering, Ann Linde will report to the OSCE. This applies not only to Nagorno-Karabakh, but also to Georgia’s ongoing conflicts with separatists in the South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions, in which the OSCE is also involved.
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