Q: Yesterday the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe heard the “Atkinson Report” on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, and passed a resolution. What is your assessment?

A: At the outset, it must be said that we value highly the Council of Europe’s efforts aimed at the South Caucasus, and in particular, at establishing stability and long-term peace in the region. At the same time, notwithstanding its positive points, the Atkinson Report was, in our view, generally faulty, since it focused on the consequences of the conflict, without delving into its causes. Further, we believe that the process of amending the report was not an objective one. One of our amendments, which even had the support of the Rapporteur himself, did not pass because of the Turkish chairman of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Political Affairs Committee.

Nevertheless, we welcome the various principles which are reaffirmed in the document by PACE. Specifically, that Resolution reaffirms that independence and secession of a regional territory “may only be achieved through a lawful and peaceful process based on democratic support by the inhabitants of such territory” as well as that “the problem cannot be resolved by use of military force, that the status and future of a population must be determined by that population.”

We also consider important the amendment which had (which was our proposal): the PACE reminder of the obligation which Armenia assumed upon Council of Europe membership – to use its influence with the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh in order to achieve a resolution to the conflict. This effectively reinforces the understanding that the conflict is between Azerbaijan and Nagorno Karabakh.

Still, this document is not a binding document. It is of an advisory and declarative nature. The negotiations will continue within the Minsk Group framework, and we believe that the positive and negative aspects of the Resolution cannot have a specific affect on the actual negotiations.