Artsakh FM: Today`s Artsakh state borders are not beyond its  historical limits

ArmInfo. Today's Artsakh state borders are not beyond its historical limits. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Artsakh Masis Mailyan stated this in an interview  with the Sharg newspaper, answering the question whether it is possible that when signing a peace agreement with Baku, Artsakh will lose most of its cities, which in its turn will not exclude the absence of common borders with Iran in future.

"I would like to note that a number of Artsakh territories, for  example, Shahumyan district, part of Martakert and Martuni districts,  which make up about 15% of the republic, have been occupied by  Azerbaijan to this day. Territories under the jurisdiction of Artsakh  are secured by a constitution adopted through a general referendum  that reflects the will of our people, that is, both in the capital  Stepanakert, and on the left bank of Artsakh, the same law, the same  legislative field, and there are no differences," Mailyan said.

To clarify whether this position corresponds to the spirit of the  negotiations held within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group, the  Artsakh Foreign Minister noted that the key to the settlement of the  conflict for the three parties is the status of the territories and  Artsakh, as well as the issues of refugees, security, and the  Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia deblockades, which the parties  periodically put forward as negotiable subjects. "In general, as  regards the negotiations and prospects for the achievement of a long-  term peace, I can say that the negotiation process already has its  own history." Negotiations on the settlement of the conflict within  the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group started in 1992 and went  through different stages recognized by the OSCE Minsk Group as a  conflicting party, that is, in the documents of the structure it is  clearly emphasized that three parties are involved in the conflict -  two states of the OSCE member and the third party is Artsakh, which  is of great importance," he said. 

He also recalled that until 1997 classic, full-fledged talks were  held in a trilateral format, and then significant progress in the  negotiations was recorded - the signing of indefinite ceasefire  agreements and its strengthening from 1994-95, under which the  signature of Artsakh stands. However, according to him, since 1997  the negotiation format has been distorted, without the direct  participation of Nagorno-Karabakh, which has a negative impact on the  settlement. "Today, in the classical sense of the negotiation process  as such, there is, as it was, for example, until 1997. Beginning in  1997, the mediators use the" shuttle diplomacy "method - they work  with the parties to agree on a number of principles, based on but  this process is difficult, and in April 2016 Azerbaijan unleashed a  war that seriously damaged the peace process and distanced the  prospects for a final settlement of the conflict. The main task today  is to preserve peace and a hundred ilnosti in the region and major  efforts of the mediators aimed precisely at this," concluded Mailyan.