Armenian President: it’s time for CoE to work directly with Karabakh

PanARMENIAN.Net - In the issue of Nagorno Karabakh settlement Armenia expects the Council of Europe not to harm the conflict settlement process, according to the President of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan.

“The short-term impact of uninformed debates allows the parties to avoid lasting solutions that could otherwise emerge in the peace talks in the frameworks of the OSCE Minsk Group,” the President said at the plenary meeting of the CoE Parliamentary Assembly (PACE).

“I am confident that the overwhelming majority of our colleagues at the PACE, who have expressed or will express a desire to discuss any issue related to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, have done or will do so out of good will. However, some can still act on the basis of inadequate information, which can indeed undermine the process. Therefore, I urge all of you to exercise some restraint. The main guidance should be the principle of causing no harm,” he said.

The head of the state believes that Karabakh has been, is, and will remain a part of Europe, albeit unrecognized.

“Do we realize that society in Karabakh today is a part of European society, a part of the European family regardless of the de-jure status of Karabakh? Has the time not come for the Council of Europe to engage directly with Karabakh in terms of its primary functions of protection and promotion of human rights, formation of civil society, democracy, tolerance, and the like? Would it not be much more logical if the Council of Europe first engaged with Karabakh before expressing a desire to discuss matters related to Karabakh, with the participation of the people of Karabakh in such discussions?” President Sargsyan said.