Today Minister Edward Nalbandian visited “Miasin” youth movement’s summer camp located on the coast of Lake Sevan, where the participants of “Miasin 2010” pan-Armenian youth educational forum are spending their training-rest.

Edward Nalbandian made a tour around the camp, got acquainted with the activities of the camp and the projects implemented by the “Miasin” movement.

Afterwards the Foreign Minister met the participants of the camp and replied to several questions on the foreign policy of Armenia and the activities of the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

Concerning the current phase of the negotiations on the Karabakh problem, the Foreign Minister of Armenia said, that in the statement of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chair countries in Almaty on July 17, there is a reference to the statements of L’Aquila from the last year and Muskoka from this year, made by Presidents Medvedev, Obama and Sarkozy and to the elements included in those statements, and it was noted that based on those elements the problem should be resolved. There was a reference to the three principles included in the statement made during the OSCE Ministerial meeting of December 1, 2009, on which basis the conflict should be settled.

Importantly it is noted that it is not acceptable to select some of the principles and elements over the others, which were conceived as an integrated whole.

If Azerbaijan is concentrated only on one of those three principles, on the territorial integrity, in reality there are three principles. If Azerbaijan gives priority only one of the six elements of Muskoka, then the co-chair countries have openly and clearly said that it is an unconstructive approach and does not contribute to the settlement of the problem.

This statement also mentioned the provocation masterminded by the Azerbaijani side on June 18th-19th, and the other Azeri steps, acts and inflammatory statements. The necessity of the consolidation of the cease-fire was stressed. It is clear to whom those messages are addressed. There is a good Russian proverb_ “и ежу понятно”.

There is an impression that the Azeris have put earplugs and do not want to listen about what the international community is talking through the mediators. They are blaming everyone, are pretending that they are constructive. But if no one else except from them understands their constructiveness, then they need to look for the culprit within themselves.

When they are talking about the consolidation of ceasefire, about avoiding from bellicose rhetoric, it should be reminded that Azerbaijan has for more than 15 years been violating the commitments undertaken by itself on respecting and consolidating of the ceasefire; not only the ceasefire agreement between Azerbaijan, Karabakh and Armenia on May 12, 1994, but also the February 4 1995 ceasefire consolidation agreement between the same three sides, according to which Azerbaijan had taken commitments to inform the Armenian sides, the mediators about any violations and not use its media for the intensification of the anti-Armenian propaganda, to abstain from inflammatory statements. Baku has been violating those commitments for decades now.

Both Armenia and Karabakh have always stood for taking steps aimed at the consolidation of the ceasefire. In March 2005 through the statement of the Defense Minister, Armenia once again re-endorsed its willingness on that issue. The same was done by Karabakh.

The absence of an adequate reaction of the international community to the violations of those obligations by Azerbaijan leads to the situation that Azerbaijan continues to reject any proposal in this direction, as it did with the call of the Foreign Ministers of the Co-Chair countries made during the Council of Foreign Ministers of the OSCE in Helsinki in 2008 – to undertake steps for the consolidation of ceasefire and withdraw snipers from the line of contact.

Let’s see how the Azerbaijanis would react to the calls made in Almaty, what steps they would take, whether they would change their unconstructive behavior, which does not lead to the settlement of the issue.”

On the question about what the “December proposals” are that Azerbaijan is continuously claiming about, Edward Nalbandian said; “The reality is that in November 2007 the Co-Chairs presented the Madrid document to the sides and it was deposited at the Secretariat of OSCE in Vienna as an official proposal.
After that there were more than twenty working proposals based on the Madrid document. When Azerbaijan declared that it could accept the working proposal of December 2009, with some exceptions, it became clear that the exceptions are more than the accepted part. Then, what does it mean “to accept with exceptions”? In fact it means rejection.

In 2010, in Sochi, during the meeting of the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan, organized by the initiative and presence of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitriy Medvedev, an agreement was reached to instruct the Foreign Ministers to continue the  negotiations by the mediation of the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation. The mediation of Minister Lavrov was and is fully supported by the United States and France and the statement of Almaty is an evidence of that. In February-June, 2010, numerous contacts on the level of Foreign Ministers took place; a number of working proposals on the basis of the Madrid document were discussed.

As a result of these negotiations the final version of the Madrid document was elaborated, which was presented during the meeting in St. Petersburg on June 17 and an agreement was reached to continue the negotiations on the basis of that version.
Today, on the one hand the Azerbaijanis say that they are thankful, they commend the efforts of Russia, but on the other hand they are questioning the importance of the St. Petersburg meeting. I will recall that in the recent period six meetings have been held by the initiative of Russian President. A question arises: why do they participate in those meetings if they are of no importance to them.”
Speaking about the possibility of the normalization of the Armenian-Turkish relations the Armenian Foreign Minister said. “The ball is in Turkey’s court, and today not only we, but also the international community says so. One may not be good in playing football, but not to notice that the ball is in your court when the whole stadium is shouting about it, is a different issue.”

The participants of the camp asked a question about the staff policy of the Foreign Ministry and the conditions of applying for a job, in an answer to which Edward Nalbandian presented the norms of entering into a diplomatic service and the goals of establishing the Diplomatic School and said; “Around 190 young fellows applied last year for the admission to the MFA Diplomatic School, 27 of them were selected and those who are successful will join the diplomatic service of Armenia to work at the MFA.
We need young cadres, as we expand the geography of our diplomatic representations.

One becomes a diplomat for life, and one should realize that not every day, but every second of diplomat’s life is dedicated to serve his country and people, to increase the number of Armenia’s friends throughout the world.

To be a diplomat is a hard work, which can be compared to military service with the difference that diplomat’s weapon is the knowledge. And it is for this very knowledge that this diplomatic school was established. Knowledge is the only criteria, on the basis of which the competitions are held and staff is elected at the MFA, the doors of which are open to every competent young fellow, who has knowledge,” the Armenian Foreign Minister summed up his speech.