Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct. 3 /Trend A.Badalova/
Nagorno-Karabakh solution will come about and be sustainable only with the support of the international community, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Germany to Azerbaijan Herbert Quelle said on the eve of the October 3 Day of German Unity.
"World public opinion will play a key role in establishing this support," he underscored.
According to Quelle, the EU, as well as Germany, is interested in contributing to a solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
"We have always supported Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. At the same time we have to accept that there is a negotiation format in the form of the OSCE Minsk Group. Nobody wants to disturb this format," he ambassador said.
The EU and Germany, according to ambassador, are mostly concerned with the question of how we can assist in building a framework around the ongoing negotiations which will be conducive to a solution.
"I am confident that the new EU special representative for the Southern Caucasus will come up with proposals in a not too distant future," he said.
The ambassador noted the readiness to examine any concrete requests for supporting Azerbaijan's concern.
He is also convinced that further progress in democratization that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev pronounced again in his speech on 27 May 2011 will be very positive for the global image of Azerbaijan.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
Relations in economic and political spheres
According to the ambassador, relations between Germany and Azerbaijan are good and historically friendly in all spheres.
Concerning economic relations, the ambassador said that the countries are in the final stage of negotiations for the establishment of a bilateral chamber of industry and commerce in Baku," he noted. This institution will support German-Azerbaijani business relations and further strengthen Germany's presence and position in Azerbaijan.
"Baku is quite an attractive market for German cars and many other products. I would also like to see more German financial direct investments," he added.
According to Quelle, small and medium enterprises are the backbone of the German economy, and it is essential that an investment destination offers them the proper legal framework and necessary securities. Azerbaijani authorities are aware of certain deficits still existing in this respect and work to remedy them.
Concerning political relations, ambassador said Germany fully supports Azerbaijan's efforts to adopt the value system that Western Europe has enjoyed since the end of World War II, including human rights, democracy, rule of law and market economy.
"The EU and her member states including Germany are in a constant dialogue about the whole range of these issues. I have the feeling that this dialogue will be further intensified," the ambassador said.
Among the bilateral meetings taking place, the ambassador highlighted high-level working group on trade and investment that was formed this year in Berlin and will meet again in Berlin in October.
