Azerbaijan, Baku, January 26 / Trend , M.Aliyev/
This year's first trilateral meeting between the presidents of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Russia Dmitry Medvedev and Armenia Serj Sargsyan was held in Sochi on Jan. 25 to discuss peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Trend Agency has asked the Azerbaijani experts to assess the results of this meeting from the point of view of settling the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Rasim Musabeyov, political scientist
Yet the only result of this meeting can be that the sides again discussed the difficult issues of conflict solution. After the meeting in Sochi, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and co-chairmen only said that the meeting was constructive, but nothing was told about the progress achieved.
In any case, we will have to await the comments of the Azerbaijani side regarding the talks. According to the statement, Lavrov did not want to make publicly available the results achieved during the negotiations, if progress was made, so that the heads of state first discussed it with their closest advisors, or Lavrov thus tried to hide the full failure of this meeting.
Oktay Sadikhzadeh, political scientist
Sochi meeting can be considered a definite step forward in the negotiation process on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement. But the fact remains that without concrete pressure on Yerevan, the Armenian authorities will not demonstrate a more democratic will and wisdom, and will not free occupied territories.
Recently, Russia is increasingly taking control over the negotiation process. After all, between the superpowers there is a definite struggle in the region, including for energy corridors, for the right to influence one or another side.
The Kremlin is trying to influence one, then the other side, controlling the region, and not allowing the Americans here. Russia is ready to act only as a guarantor of the agreements between the two countries. Unless Russia swerves from its classical position, the process will not move off the deadlock.
The negotiation process may delay - and not for one year. So we all need to prepare for the information war for Karabakh.
Rasim Agayev, political scientist
It needs to approach the Sochi meeting with a position of more cautious optimism. No breakthrough occurred or expected there. On the other hand, Moscow manages to keep the conflicting sides in the negotiating process.
It is necessary to expect progress not now, but after the sides express their readiness for new compromises - this is an interim status for Nagorno Karabakh, the return of the Azerbaijani community to Karabakh.
Russia wants to resolve the issue in a way not offending Armenia, and at the same time maintain relations with Azerbaijan. In principle, Moscow is satisfied with both options - achieve a compromise between the sides or keep the conflict unresolved.
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