OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, Nagorno-Karabakh NGOs hold first-ever meeting

Nagorno-Karabakh NGOs regard as unprecedented the meeting between the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs and Nagorno-Karabakh civil society, Chairman of the European movement in Artsakh NGO Hayk Khanumyan told Tert.am.

NGOs dealing with the problems of freedom of the press, women and refugees participated in the meeting.

“It is the first-ever direct contact between the co-chairs and civil society. The meetings are of importance for the Artsakh people’s voice to be heard,” Khanumyan said.

One of the initiators of the meeting, Chairman of the Demo club Gegham Baghdasaryan too considers the meeting unprecedented as “the co-chairs arrived at the NGO’s office and met with the NGO representatives.”

A similar meeting had earlier been held in Brussels. It was organized by the European initiative to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Since the meeting decided that the sides would not discuss anything except for the previous agreements, Khanumyan said that restrictions were imposed on him in presenting questions and answers by Nagorno-Karabakh experts and OSCE Minsk Group diplomats.

“We raised questions about different aspects – both the logic of negotiations and methods. The co-chairs were surprised at our being well-informed of the package. That is they did not get similar impressions from their meetings in other societies,” Khanumyan said.

As regards the unacceptability of the Madrid principles to Nagorno-Karabakh, he said: “It is clear that if we made proposals concerning negotiations, it means that the previous proposals are unacceptable to us.”

The proposals presented the guidelines being discussed now, Khanumyan said.

On Wednesday Russian Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Igor Popov stated that Nagorno-Karabakh must be re-involved in the negotiation process in a certain period.

Khanumyan welcomes the statement. Nagorno-Karabakh’s re-involvement in the negotiations is being widely discussed.

According to Khanumyan, it must be done now because “it is Nagorno-Karabakh that must participate in negotiations over the Nagorno-Karabakh problem.”