Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug.17
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
It’s time to disband the OSCE Minsk Group as failing to cope with the goals and objectives set at the time when it was created, politician and Chairperson of the Public Chamber of Moldova Aurelia Grigoriu told Trend on August 17.
"Much to one's regret, the Minsk Group has no influence on the ongoing processes. Its complete incapacity has long been obvious," Grigoriu said. "It seems that the only purpose of this group is to contribute to delay by all means of addressing the essence of the issue of withdrawing the aggressor from the occupied territories and restoring the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan."
"The structure, in my opinion, is obliged to follow and facilitate the implementation of a peaceful settlement of the crisis based on the principles, commitments and provisions of the OSCE. After all, the purpose of creating the group of OSCE member states was precisely to lead the search for ways of a peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict," she noted.
The politician further questioned: "Where is the proper reaction of the Minsk Group to the July events on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border, apart from general words of regret and concern? Where are the constructive proposals and international reaction to violations committed?"
According to Grigoriu, it’s already obvious to everyone that the OSCE Minsk Group is completely incompetent.
"Why is the OSCE not using and not applying all the mechanisms of influence on the aggressor country provided for by international law? Because they don’t want to understand the true reasons of the current situation and eliminate the cause instead of creating the appearance of fighting the consequences," she emphasized.
The politician asked: "The appeals of the Minsk Group to come to an agreement don’t stand up to scrutiny."
"It’s time to set up a new structure, which, in my opinion, should include reputable countries of the world, capable of providing effective assistance to reduce the tensions, restore the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan suffering from the actions of the aggressor, and ensure aggressors compliance with international law," she added.
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, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
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