Friday, February 2 2024 14:47

ArmInfo.The discussions on creating Azerbaijan-Armenia interparliamentary dialogue platform may  take place in Geneva, this March, Secretary General of the Inter- Parliamentary Union (IPU) Martin Chungong said in an exclusive interview with Trend, as he visited Baku.

He pointed out that IPU is aware of the recent developments in the  region, the relations between Azerbaijan and its neighbors, and the  IPU, as the organization that was created to foster peace and  security in the world, feels it is necessary to discuss and engage  with the parties to the crisis and see how it can be helpful through  dialogue to resolve issues that are not in place, that have the  potential for creating instability.

"I have had those discussions with the authorities of Azerbaijan, and  I am pleased with the response that I have received. What we are  striving for at this stage is to secure an agreement on principle of  IPU providing a platform for the two countries at the parliamentary  level, to sit together and discuss in a frank and honest manner those  issues that can, if resolved, help consolidate peace in the region.  We are thinking of inviting the senior leadership of the parliaments  of the two countries to come together, because we believe in  parliamentary diplomacy, which is complementary to the traditional  form of diplomacy that is articulated by the executive arms of  government," said IPU secretary general.

Chungong said he feels energized to prosecute the initiative that we  have launched, and which has received strong support from Azerbaijan  at the highest level of state.

"You can be sure that this overall initiative goes well for whatever  actions we will be putting in place. So I will be inviting speaker of  Azerbaijani parliament Sahiba Gafarova to come to Geneva to have  talks with counterparts in Armenia so that we can begin to move along  the agenda of creating this platform for ongoing dialogue. We hope  that we can organize such a meeting during the next assembly of the  Inter- Parliamentary Union which takes place around the 23rd of March  to about the 27th of March this year. We want to engage the  representatives of the people to sit together in a cordial format,  initially informal to really talk about those burning issues that are  a bone of contention between the two parties. And in this way, we can  create a better understanding between the parliaments of the two  countries. We can then seek to create an environment that is  propitious and conducive for the successful outcome of ongoing peace  negotiations between the two countries," he said.

Chungong clarified that the purpose of IPU's initiative is not to  duplicate what is being done by the governmental authorities through  negotiations between two states.

"That is the role of the government in international law. The  parliaments can bring their voice to the discussion so that whatever  peace outcomes are arrived at are responsive to and committed to. And  that is convenient or may be conformant with the needs of the people  that are represented by parliaments. I'm pleased to note that on both  sides there is a positive response to this initiative. And we look  forward to this engagement because we think that it holds a strong  potential for creating trust, for dispelling misunderstandings that  may be there and for creating that goodwill that is necessary for  peaceful and harmonious relations between people. My organization,  the IPU, is very pleased to be able to offer that platform because  that is its mandate, its duty and responsibility to humanity to  arrive at a mutual understanding between parties to a conflict and in  this way contribute to peace and security in the world," said IPU  secretary general.

He noted that first of all, positive forces are needed to be  mobilized here.

"We should build on the positive forces that are out there and  minimize the possibility, the potential for destruction by those  other forces. We are concerned with mobilizing the positive forces  that are there. My discussions with President Ilham Aliyev left me  very satisfied with the commitment to prosecute the peace process in  a way that is successful. That is what is important to us, the  commitment by the two sides. We maximize the contribution of the  positive facilitators and so, to minimize the influence, the impact  of those who may have their own agenda. So for me, what I'm looking  to is tapping into the positive forces there, starting with the  parties concerned. And as I say, I'm very pleased with the response  that we have," added Chungong.