Baku, Azerbaijan, July 21
By Anakhanum Khidayatova - Trend:
There is an immediate need for the international community to quickly spearhead the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict outside of the OSCE Minsk Group framework, political analyst, expert on international relations at Marquette University (US), Peter Tase told Trend July 21.
It is very unfortunate that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has not been solved for more than a quarter of a century and Armenian armed forces repeatedly violate the ceasefire, he said.
On the other hand, since 2005, there has not been a significant growth in the population of Nagorno-Karabakh, according to Tase.
"Armenian population in these areas live in precarious conditions, with poor infrastructure, insignificant economic activity and limited access to public services," said the expert.
Although the OSCE Minsk Group has been around since 1992, it is difficult to measure the tangible success of this negotiating body, said Tase, adding that the Minsk Group has proved to be inefficient, irrelevant.
"Unfortunately it has become very difficult to measure the success of this conflict resolution entity that is under the umbrella of the OSCE," said the expert.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
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