Armenian Foreign Minister addresses OSCE Permanent Council, voices commitment to durable conflict resolution

VIENNA, 3 March 2011 – Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandyan told the OSCE Permanent Council today that the OSCE Minsk Group remains the only internationally mandated format for negotiations on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and expressed his hope for a peaceful resolution of the conflict.

“The OSCE has an important role in dealing with security and co-operation issues,” he said. “In the current fragile regional environment we regard it as a valuable component of our security. Armenia is ready to contribute, in the spirit of the principles set forth in the Helsinki Final Act, to the efforts to revitalise this Organisation by making it stronger, more reliable, effective and responsive”.

Speaking on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Nalbandyan said that “over the past years Armenia spared no effort to find a peaceful and durable resolution to the conflict”.

He emphasized that the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs “remain the only format internationally mandated to mediate”. Nalbandyan reiterated Armenia’s support to the Madrid principles proposed to the sides by the Minsk Group Co-Chairs in 2007 - non-use of force, self-determination and territorial integrity - as well as to the elements presented in the framework of the G8 Summit in L’Aquila as basis for negotiations. He stressed that Armenia fully shared the view of the Minisk Group co-chairs that any attempt to select some elements over others would make it impossible to achieve a solution. “Armenia is ready to move towards the settlement on the basis of these principles and elements, which also reflect the position of the entire international community”.

The Minsk Group spearheads the OSCE's efforts to find a political solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. It is co-chaired by the Russian Federation, the United States and France.

The next meeting of the Presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan will take place on March 5 in Sochy at the initiative of the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and in the presence of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs.

Speaking about Armenia’s state building, Nalbandyan stressed the efforts of Armenia to ensure the sustainability of its progress in building modern society based on the rule of law and respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including in the field of the media and fight against corruption.

The Permanent Council is one of the main regular decision-making bodies of the OSCE. It convenes weekly in Vienna to discuss developments in the OSCE area and to make appropriate decisions.