Azerbaijan (Armenians)

Oct 24, 1995	The foreign minister of the self-proclaimed Nagornyy Karabakh Republic, Arkadiy Gukasyan, said that Azerbaijan was responsible for the lack of progress at the latest round of talks. Gukasyan said that the parties failed to reach agreement on major issues, such as the status and security of Nagornyy Karabakh, the disputed towns of Shusha and Lachin, the withdrawal of troops, refugees and the lifting of road blockades. Gukasyan observed that the political issues had to be resolved in a package, which had been the Karabakh position (BBC).
Oct 27, 1995	President Heydar Aliyev of Azerbaijan met in New York with Bill Clinton, to discuss bilateral cooperation and a solution to the Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict. The Azerbaijani ambassador to the USA, Hafiz Pashayev, told the television that the discussed issues included: broadening of bilateral cooperation between the US and Azerbaijan, issues pertaining to the activity of US firms in the oil consortium, and ways of resolving the Azerbaijani- Armenian conflict. State Secretary Madeline Albright said that Washington "is now paying more attention to relations with Azerbaijan" for both economic and political reasons (BBC).
Nov 14, 1995	Parliamentary elections and a referendum on a new constitution were held in Azerbaijan. Preliminary results showed that most voters approved the new constitution, strengthening presidential powers, and supported Aliyev's New Azerbaijani Party. Installed in June 1993 by parliament, president Aliyev replaced the nationalistically oriented Abualfaz Elchibey, the country's first popularly elected president, and returned his country to the Russia-led Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) (Inter-Press Service).
Dec 1995	The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) agreed to send a 3,000-strong multinational peacekeeping force to Azerbaijan, composed of troops from Croatia, Hungary, the Baltic states and Turkey, with Russians making up 30 per cent of the total (Europe World Review of Information).
Dec 5, 1995	On a first day of his working visit to Paris Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliyev said that he was prepared to grant autonomy to the disputed region of Nagornyy Karabakh as long as Baku's sovereignty over the region was recognized by Armenia. Aliyev noted that a peace settlement in Karabakh was possible provided Armenian troops withdrew from occupied territories. The President added that the proposal had been rejected by Armenia (BBC)
Dec 8, 1995	Two competing alliances shape the struggle over Caspian oil. One of them comprises Western countries led by the United States and joined by Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Kazakhstan. The other one includes Russia, Iran, Armenia, Greece and Turkmenistan. The list of belligerents also includes separatist groups of the Caucasus and the Middle East. The Kurdish rebels in Turkey, the Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Abkhazians and Ossetians objectively come out as the allies of the "Russian-Iranian bloc" while the "Western bloc" includes Chechnya (commentary, Moscow News).
Dec 8, 1995	Turkish President Suleyman Demirel and Azerbaijani leader Geidar Aliyev signed a joint statement saying that the two sides gave priority to peaceful settlement of the Azerbaijani-Armenian conflict within the framework of the OSCE and denounced Armenia's aggression against Azerbaijan. The two leaders also expressed a mutual desire to build an oil pipeline which would run across the Turkish territory for the exports of Azerbaijani oil (ITAR-TASS).
Dec 20, 1995	German Foreign Minister, Klaus Kinkel, arrived for a three-day visit to Armenia and Azerbaijan. In a statement issued shortly before his departure Kinkel said that the most important tasks facing the two states were economic reforms and political resolution of the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict. Germany is a member of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's (OSCE) Minsk Group which is seeking a resolution for the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict (DPA).
Jan 10, 1996	Turkish President Suleyman Demirel paid a three-day official visit to the republic of Azerbaijan. Presidents of Azerbaijan and Turkey signed a joint communique endorsing the principles of bilateral cooperation formulated in a Turkish-Azerbaijani statement the previous month (Current Digest of the Post-Soviet Press).
Jan 22, 1996	After attending the CIS summit in Moscow, Azerbaijani President Aliyev said that Russia had a decisive role to play in reaching a settlement to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed region of Nagornyy Karabakh. He said that the CIS summit had adopted an appeal to the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia, and to other CIS heads of state, urging that the 19-month-old cease-fire between the warring sides be maintained until a political agreement is reached (BBC).
Feb 22, 1996	An incident on the border of the territory of Nakhichevan, an Azeri held enclave in Armenia which mirrors Armenian-held Nagorno-Karabakh, brought the 20th-month armistice in the Nagornyy Karabakh region to an end. Baku and Yerevan blamed each other for the renewal of military operations. Moscow News observes that the incident has renewed public interest in the benefits and disadvantages of different scenarios for the management of the Karabakh conflict. The newspaper discusses three of them suggested by the American political scientists, Paul Globe. In the first scenario, Karabakh loses a protracted war with Azerbaijan. In the second one, an "external power" (meaning Russia) forces its own solution and creates a Russian protectorate. In the third scenario, Nagornyy Karabakh goes to Armenia with the Lachin corridor and the western part of Nakhichevan, while Azerbaijan receives in exchange the Zangezur district thereby creating a direct border with Turkey. Globe recommends the third scenario. He also suggests that Armenia hold negotiations with Azerbaijan and Georgia because the oil pipeline could well pass through Armenian territory. Moscow News notes that Baku ignores Globe's plan, charging that changing of borders violates international agreements and UN principles. Baku agrees to give the Karabakh region "broad autonomy" in exchange for 20 percent of occupied Azerbaijani land and the return of some 1.5 million refugees. Azerbaijan's leadership flatly rejects the idea of "federalizing" the state of Azerbaijan or establishing confederate relations with Nagornyy Karabakh. Moscow News also observes that Nagornyy Karabakh dislikes the idea of autonomous Karabakh within Azerbaijan. Yerevan, like Baku, is not prepared to discuss an exchange of territory. Armenia believes that the people of Nagornyy Karabakh should decide their future for themselves, the newspaper points out. Moscow News observes that the US and Russian mediators in the conflict are more concerned with their own interests rather than ending the conflict. Primary concern for both powers is certainly the Azerbaijani oil. Both sides approach the problem from opposite directions. Moscow prefers the preservation of existing borders and improved status for Nagornyy Karabakh in a federation or confederation. This solution would give Russia a chance to increase its influence in the Transcaucases. The White House, instead, is indirectly proposing a territorial exchange. This would take Russia out of the 21st century oil picture and strengthen the pro-Western stance of Azerbaijan through Turkey (The Moscow News).
Mar 3, 1996	The parliaments of Armenia and the self-proclaimed Nagornyy Karabakh Republic in neighboring Azerbaijan signed a cooperation agreement. Interparliamentary cooperation is expected to assist the deepening and consolidation of political, economic, scientific and cultural ties between Armenia and the Nagornyy Karabakh Republic (BBC).
Mar 4, 1996	Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliyev told visiting OSCE Chairman Flavio Cotti that Azerbaijan was ready to abide by the Nagornyy Karabakh cease-fire agreement on the condition that Armenian troops withdraw from occupied territories, including Shusha and Lachin, and Azrebaijani refugees return to their homes. If these conditions were met, Azerbaijan was ready to guarantee "security to ethnic Armenians of Azerbaijan and give a high status to Nagornyy Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan", Aliyev said. Alyiev also pointed that "If Lachin and Shusha are liberated, Azerbaijan is ready to agree to the so-called Lachin transport corridor from Nagornyy Karabakh to Armenia under the control of international forces" (BBC).
Mar 7, 1996	Joseph Pressel, US representative in the Minsk OSCE group, submitted to the leadership of Azerbaijan a new US plan of Nagornyy Karabakh settlement. Armenian troops would leave the regions of Azerbaijan around Nagornyy Karabakh and retreat into the Nagornyy Karabakh territory. At the same time, Nagornyy Karabakh would be given a status of an autonomous state within Azerbaijan, which would allow it to have its own government, parliament, armed forces, courts, etc. According to the US plan, the Karabakh town of Shusha, which Azeri want liberated, would be under Nagornyy Karabakh jurisdiction. Regarding the liberation of the city of Lachin, through which the only road between Karabakh and Armenia runs, the US plan suggests that it would likely remain "under the control of international peacekeeping forces." The new US plan was received differently by different political forces. The major opposition Party of National Independence in Azerbaijan said that the plan was totally unacceptable because the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan was not recognized in it. On the other hand, Foreign Minister of Nagornyy Karabakh, Arkady Gukasyan, said that the existence of Karabakh as an enclave was impossible. The task of the mediators in the conflict, Gukasyan pointed out, was to maintain a balance between territorial integrity and the right of nations to self-determination (Russian Press Digest).
Apr 18, 1996	The OSCE, the United States and Russia tried to bring together the Azeri and Armenian presidents in Moscow. Peace talks sponsored by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) had been so far stalled as the Baku government offered autonomy for the enclave, while Karabakh Armenians insisted on independence (AFP).
Apr 24, 1996	Seeing an opportunity to improve the Turkish-US relationship, Turkish Prime Minister, Mesut Yilmaz, told Strobe Talbott, Deputy Secretary of State, that if a peace agreement were signed between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Turkey would open its long closed border with Armenia. (The Washington Post).
May 8, 1996	Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov visited Baku and Yerevan for political consultations over the settlement of the conflict in Nagornyy Karabakh. The minister made the trip within the framework of Russia's "shuttle diplomacy". Primakov said that Moscow was for a just settlement of the conflict. This included granting Nagoirnyy Karabakh the status of an autonomy state. Primakov was also involved in a humanitarian action conducted by Russian mediators with participation of the Red Cross International Committee. The action aimed at exchanging prisoners of war and hostages between Armenia and Azerbaijan (ITAR-TASS).
May 8, 1996	Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov brought 34 Armenian civilians and prisoners-of-war to Yerevan after they were released by the Azerbaijani authorities. Armenian defense ministry officials said that in exchange for the prisoners freed by Azerbaijan, Armenia would free 11 ethnic Azerbaijani POWs, and the Nagorno-Karabakh authorities another 59. One Armenian Defense ministry official said that Azerbaijan was still holding 178 Armenian POWs and about 150 civilians. The Russian diplomatic effort followed an agreement at summit talks between Azeri President Alyiev and Armenian President Ter-Petrossian to extend a ceasefire, step up peace talks, and free all POWs (AFP).
May 10, 1996	At a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov, Azeri President Aliyev and Armenian President Ter-Petrossian confirmed their determination to observe a cease-fire agreement until an appropriate political accord was signed (DPA).
May 16, 1996	Nagornyy Karabakh Foreign Minister Arkadiy Ghukasyan told a news conference that the release of prisoners represented a "certain breakthrough, particularly in the resolution of humanitarian problems" (BBC).
Jun 1, 1996	A two-year-old ceasefire in the Azeri-Armenian war was under threat in Azerbaijan's Nakhichevan enclave after more than a week of sporadic clashes (AFP).
Jul 5, 1996	Talks at Stokholm to settle the future of the secessionist Armenian-populated enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh ended in total deadlock. The protagonists: Azerbaijanis, Armenians from Armenia and Armenian secessionists from the enclave, showed no political will, said Ingrid Tersman, a Swedish foreign ministry official who followed the talks. The main stumbling block remained the political status of Nagorno-Karabakh, security arrangements, the return of refugees, and the disarming of combatants (AFP).
Jul 12, 1996	Azeri Foreign Minister Gasan Hasanov said that Azerbaijan was ready to enter any military bloc that could save Azerbaijan from Armenian aggression (Russian Press Digest).
Sep 17, 1996	Armenian President Levon Ter-Petrosyan said that the sides involved in the conflict over Nagornyy Karabakh should seek an "interim solution" on the issue of the legal status of the disputed region to allow economic development. "One should be psychologically ready that the issue of the legal status of Nagornyy Karabakh could be delayed for a long time", Ter-Petrosyan added (BBC).
Oct 28, 1996	Another round of talks to resolve the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagornyy Karabakh region opened in Moscow. Representatives of the sides told the agency that they felt a "restrained optimism" regarding the likely outcome of the talks (BBC).
Nov 19, 1996	A new series of talks to settle the future of the secessionist Armenian-populated enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh opened in the Finnish capital. They were joined by countries of the so-called Minsk group and were presided over by Russia and Finland. The aim of the talks was to reach some progress before the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe summit in Lisbon in December. In 1992, the OSCE charged a group of countries, dubbed the Minsk group, with finding a solution to the Nagornyy Karabakh conflict. Besides Russia and Finland, the Minsk group also includes Belarus, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy Sweden, Turkey and the United States (AFP).
Nov 24, 1996	Presidential elections were held in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. The Armenian population chose between the incumbent President Robert Kocharyan, former Deputy Parliament Speaker Boris Arushayan, and Communist leader Grant Melkumyan. All candidates supported independence for the enclave and the continuation of economic reform. Nearly 50 percent of the eligible electorate of 130,000 voted, well in excess of the 25 percent turnout needed to validate the election. The elections sparked protests in cities and towns throughout Azerbaijan, some of which included thousands of demonstrators. State-run Azerbaijani television commented that the presence of Russian electoral observers at voting sites represented a lack of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe together with a number of foreign countries expressed concern for the effect the vote might have on regional stability. Russia and Turkey also objected to the election on the grounds that it was being held before talks on the region's political status were completed. Washington denounced the elections as a threat to the fragile peace process (United Press International).
Nov 26, 1996	Robert Kocharian was re-elected president of Nagorno-Karabakh region (AFP).
Dec 6, 1996	An OSCE summit opened in Lisbon. Current OSCE chairman, Swiss Foreign Minister Flavio Cotti, gave an account of major principles to settle the Karabakh conflict. They were: recognition by the international community of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity; autonomy for Nagorno-Karabakh; security for the population (ITAR-TASS).
Feb 1997	The US Department of State reports that only 10,000 to 20,000 Armenians still live in Azerbaijan following the expulsion and departure of many Armenians after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The State Department observes that with the nearly complete departure of the Armenian population, the number of problems reported by this ethnic minority decreased. The report said that Armenians complained of discrimination in employment and harassment at schools and work places, of refusal of local authorities to grant Armenians passports or pay pensions. However, some persons of mixed Armenian-Azerbaijani descent continue to occupy government positions. The State Department noted that in a speech in August, Azerbaijani President urged Azerbaijanis not to behave negatively towards Armenians in mixed families (US Department of State).
Mar 4, 1997	The Armenian Foreign Ministry issued a statement accusing Azerbaijan of stockpiling weapons in preparation for an attempt to resolve the dispute over Nagronyy Karabakh by military means. The statement rejected as "baseless" recent statements by the Russian and Azerbaijani authorities that arms have been illegally supplied to Armenia in breach of the Conventional Forces in Europe treaty (BBC).
Mar 14, 1997	An Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry official dismissed a statement by Armenia accusing Baku of attempting to undermine the peace process by focusing on the alleged sale of Russian arms to Yerevan (BBC).
Mar 25, 1997	The newly appointed Armenian Prime Minister, Robert Kocharyan, laid out his premier slate on Armenia's future economic reforms. Kocharyan had been president of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh republic. Kocharyan said that incumbent prime minister of Nagorno-Karabakh Leonard Petrossyan was most likely to be elected president of Karabakh (ITAR-TASS).
Apr 1997	It was reported that fighting erupted during the third week of April between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Each side accused the other of instigating the fighting. The Russian military recorded 32 major violations of the ceasefire. This was the worst fighting since Yerevan and Baku signed a 1994 ceasefire freezing Armenia's hold over some 20 percent of the territory of Azerbaijan. It was pointed out that some 35 km (22 miles) from the main area of the recent clashes, inside Azerbaijan, there was a vital oil pipeline, which was at the heart of an $ 8-billlion international project. It was said that a hot war between Armenia and Azerbaijan was likely as both sides looked interested in gaining control over this pipeline in order to influence the global and regional energy markets.
Apr 5, 1997	Azeri leaders warned that alleged clandestine Russian arms shipments to Armenia "could lead to a new large scale war in the [Caucasus] region" and demanded that the weapons be returned to Moscow. President Aliyev sent a message to Boris Yeltsin, Russian President, urging Kremlin to take "the most active measures" to bring the armaments back to Russia (Financial Times).
Apr 10, 1997	The Azerbaijani parliament sent a letter to the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly questioning Russia's co-chairmanship of the OSCE Minsk Group. The letter drew attention to Russia's alleged illegal supply of arms to Armenia (BBC).
Apr 23, 1997	The appointment of Robert Kocharyan, President of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, to the post of Prime Minister of Armenia provoked the wrath of Azerbaijani diplomats. Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said that this fact could have a negative impact on the peace process. Azimov said that the appointment showed a desire on the part of Yerevan to "consolidate the annexation of part of Azerbaijani territory" (Current Digest of the Post Soviet Press).
May 1, 1997	The ruling New Azerbaijan Party (NAP) denounced a recent statement by a human rights body in the republic, which had called for the protection of ethnic Armenians' rights, as an "insult" to Azerbaijani refugees from Armenia and Armenian-occupied territory (BBC).
May 2, 1997	A human rights body in Azerbaijan defended its recent statement which had highlighted the plight of ethnic Armenians in the republic and criticized the ruling New Azerbaijan Party for denouncing it (BBC).
May 8, 1997	Twelve political parties in Azerbaijan issued a statement expressing their readiness to unite with the government in the event of war with Armenia. The statement also condemned the illegal supply of Russian arms to Armenia (BBC).