Trilateral meeting in Washington may be a good opportunity to curb Aliyev`s political appetites - expert

ArmInfo. The upcoming trilateral meeting in Washington betwen the leaders of the United States, Armenia and Azerbaijan - Donald Trump, Nikol Pashinyan and Ilham Aliyev - may be a good opportunity to curb the growing political appetites of the  Azerbaijani state's leader, all that remains is to be inventive, as noted by Tatevik Hayrapetyan, expert on Azerbaijani studies, in a post on her Facebook page.

According to her,  the Azerbaijani propaganda press is spreading much more active comments on this topic, compared to the Armenian side. The main thesis being that this meeting allegedly proves that the Armenian side has accepted the offer to outsource the road through Syunik. "To be honest, I don't think it's possible at all, and even if Pashinyan really wanted to accept this offer, he would do it. But that's beside the point:  judging by the public discussions in Azerbaijan, they are not considering signing any agreement. Aliyev has directly stated that he will not sign it, he needs continuity in the process, as it ensures him the acquisition of new benefits. As for possible pressure from the United States, Aliyev has good experience in resisting it. He understands that so far neither side will take any practical steps against him, the rest is just awkward talk that will simply be ignored. In general, I got the impression that neither Yerevan nor Baku clearly imagines what developments are expected in Washington. Aliyev, in my opinion, has clear plans, he will try to achieve some success within the framework of the Abraham Accords, perhaps the abolition of the OSCE Minsk Group. Why not also discuss Resolution 907 and a number of other topics? In general, his dream was to have a direct conversation with Trump," the political scientist noted.

Hayrapetyan expressed doubt that Pashinyan had a clear agenda. According to her, the official statement is too general in nature, but it is important what issues he plans to discuss. "In my opinion, if we had a government that served the national interest, US mediation could be a good opportunity to raise the issue of the release of prisoners of war and hostage. This topic is not alien to the White House, with some high- ranking American officials  well acquainted with this topic, thanks to the efforts of Ruben Vardanyan's international lawyer and  various organizations. This could be presented as an important step towards peace. In any case, I have always said and continue to adhere to the opinion that negotiations without mediators are much worse for us. The mediators will at least try to maintain  some logic, unlike direct talks between Pashinyan and Aliyev , where Pashinyan simply receives an updated list of his wishes instead of discussions.The persistence and consistency of the mediator are no less important for the result. In general, I consider US mediation and Trump's activity, possibly due to domestic political and personal ambitions, as an opportunity, if, of course, the visit is accompanied by meaningful discussions that align with the Armenian interests. This could also be a good opportunity to curb Aliyev's growing political appetites. All that remains is to show ingenuity," Tatevik Hayrapetyan emphasized.