The settlement of the armed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan
The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has been on the agenda of the CSCE/OSCE since the very accession of the two states to the Organization. Already on February 28, 1992 the CSCE Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) urged “the interested parties to impose an immediate ceasefire on all forces in the Nagorno-Karabakh area of the Azerbaijani Republic”. The CSO also noted the need for “respect for the inviolability of all borders” which “can only be changed through peaceful means and by common agreement”, as well as for “guarantees for the absence of territorial claims towards any neighboring State”.
On March 24, 1992, in Helsinki the First Additional Meeting of the CSCE Council of Ministers decided to convoke a conference on Nagorno-Karabakh in the Belarusian capital - Minsk as “an ongoing forum for negotiations towards the peaceful settlement of the crisis on the basis of the principles, commitments and provisions of the CSCE”. Nine participating States of the CSCE, as well as two countries – parties to the conflict – Azerbaijan and Armenia - were to take part in the Conference. Representatives of Azerbaijani and Armenian communities of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan were to be invited by the Chairman of the Conference as “interested parties” based upon agreement of the countries participating in the Conference.
In 1993 following the escalation of the conflict by Armenia resulted in military occupation of the whole territory of the Nagorno Karabakh region of Azerbaijan and seven other Azerbaijani districts around it the UN Security Council adopted four resolutions (UNSC resolutions 822,853,874,884) in which it condemned the occupation of the Azerbaijani territories and demanded immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of all occupying forces from all occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The Security Council in its resolutions also reiterated its support for the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and reconfirmed the Nagorno-Karabakh region as Azerbaijan’s integral part. These resolutions still remain unimplemented.
In May 1993 Initial Operations Planning Group (IOPG) was established in the OSCE framework in order to prepare the deployment of the OSCE Monitoring Mission in the area of conflict.
The Heads of State and Government at the CSCE Summit which was held on December 5 – 6, 1994 in Budapest “confirmed their commitment to the relevant resolutions of the United Nations Security Council” in the context of the continued conflict. The Summit also decided to set up Co-chairmanship of the Minsk Conference in order “to realize full coordination in all mediation and negotiation activities”. The Co-Chairmen who were to be “guided in all negotiating efforts by CSCE principles and an agreed mandate” were entrusted with conducting “speedy negotiations for the conclusion of a political agreement on the cessation of the armed conflict, the implementation of which will eliminate major consequences of the conflict for all parties and permit the convening of the Minsk Conference”. The Summit furthermore agreed “to provide … a multinational CSCE peacekeeping force following agreement among the parties for cessation of the armed conflict”. According to the relevant decision of the summit the High-Level Planning Group (HLPG) was also established with the aim of intensifying action in relation to the conflict dealt with by the Minsk Conference. HLPG superseded an earlier IOPG.
On August 10 the OSCE Chairman-in-Office appointed a Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office on the Conflict Dealt with by the OSCE Minsk conference. The present Personal Representative, Ambassador Andrzey Kasprzyk of Poland was appointed by the OSCE Chairman-in-Office on January 1, 1997.
The Personal Representative’s mandate from the Chairman-in-Office is to:
· represent the OSCE Chairman-in-Office in issues related to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, assist the CiO in achieving an agreement on the cessation of the armed conflict and in creating conditions for the deployment of an OSCE peace-keeping operation, in order to facilitate a lasting comprehensive political settlement of the conflict in all its aspects;
· report on all aspects of his activities to the CiO of the OSCE, report through the CiO to the Co-Chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Conference and, as appropriate, to the Minsk Group, and receive instructions from the CiO;
· assist the Co-Chairmanship at its request;
· assist the High Level Planning Group in planning an OSCE peace-keeping operation in accordance with the Budapest Summit Decisions;
· assist the parties in implementing and developing confidence-building, humanitarian and other measures facilitating the peace process, in particular by encouraging direct contacts;
· co-operate, as appropriate, with representatives of the United Nations and other international organizations operating in the area of conflict.
According to the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the Government of Georgia, the PR established a separate office in Tbilisi as a basis and headquarters. In order to be able to conduct the operational activities defined in the mandate, the Field Assistants of the PR are present in Baku, Yerevan and Khankendi.
At the OSCE Summit that took place on December 2 - 3, 1996 in Lisbon the Co-Chairmen of the Minsk Conference and the Chairman-in-Office put forward the cornerstone principles of the conflict settlement which provided for the territorial integrity of Armenia and Azerbaijan, the highest degree of self-rule for Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan and guaranteed security for its whole population. These principles found their way into the Lisbon Document in the form of a statement by OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland Mr. Flavio Cotti. All the OSCE participating States except one country – Armenia - supported these principles.
The present arrangement for a three-fold Chairmanship of the Minsk Conference (Russia, France and the United States) was made in 1997, following the Lisbon Summit.
On 1 June 1997, the Co-Chairmen presented a draft of a comprehensive agreement to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which envisaged withdrawal of Armenian troops from some of the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and contained elements dealing with the status of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan accepted this proposal in principle but Armenia rejected it.
On 19 September 1997, the Co-Chairmen presented a new proposal for ending the military conflict. They recommended that as a first step those portions of the political agreement that had already been accepted during previous negotiations, should be implemented. Azerbaijan supported this proposal by the Co-Chairmen, but Armenia once again rejected it.
Later the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan announced in a joint declaration on 11 October 1997 in Strasbourg that these proposals represented a promising basis for resuming negotiations within the framework of the Minsk Group. This was the first time (still the last one so far) that the proposals by the Co-Chairmen received positive reaction form both Armenia and Azerbaijan. However, Armenia's new leadership rejected these proposals in 1998.
A year later, on 7 November 1998, the Co-Chairmen presented new proposals based on the concept of a "common state" according to which “Nagorno-Karabakh” would have the status of a state and a territorial structure in the form of a republic that would, together with Azerbaijan, constitute a “common state” within its internationally recognized borders. Azerbaijan rejected these proposals because they violated its sovereignty, undermined its territorial integrity as well as contradicted the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council and the Lisbon principles.
Since then the Co-chairmen have repeatedly traveled to Azerbaijan and Armenia to discuss the situation around the conflict settlement process, as well as participated in some meetings of the Presidents of the two countries. The Co-chairmen on a regular basis report to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna and brief delegations of the Minsk Group member-countries in Vienna on their activities.
Starting with 1999, the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia engaged in direct dialogue in order to assist the mediators in their efforts aimed at achieving breakthrough in the search for peace.
At the OSCE Summit held in Istanbul on November 18-19, 1999, the Heads of State and Government expressed their support to this dialogue being conducted at the highest political level “with the hope of resuming negotiations within the OSCE Minsk Group”.
The Foreign Ministers of the OSCE participating States in Bucharest and Porto in 2001 and 2002 accordingly, called upon the sides “to achieve an early resolution of the conflict based on norms and principles of international law”.
In Porto the Delegation of Azerbaijan made an interpretative statement to the text of the relevant decision on the conflict that outlined major elements of the position of Azerbaijan with regard to the settlement of the conflict, which is firmly based upon the foundation of international law.
This principled position was reiterated in the interpretative statement of Azerbaijan at the Ministerial meeting in Maastricht in December 2003.