On 24 April, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to the statements made by Armenia’s Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan regarding Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement on the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement. 

“Our position as a co-chairing country of the OSCE Minsk Group has been repeatedly voiced in joint statements by the top leaders of Russia, the USA and France. It is based on the fundamental principles of the Helsinki Final Act, including the principles of the non-use of force, territorial integrity and the right to self-determination. Among the elements of the settlement contained in these statements are the return of the territories located around Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as the determination of the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh by the will of the population. As for the documents and proposals that were considered and are being considered, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov listed them,” the department said.

The Russian MFA noted the theme of the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement is rather delicate. “Transferring it to public debate is counterproductive. We presume that settlement issues should be considered during negotiations within the framework of the established format,” it added. 

The spokesperson for Armenia’s MFA Anna Naghdalyan also commented on the statements, saying that since 2018 Armenia has not been negotiating on a phased approach of the settlement. “The Armenian parties will not accept any settlement option which does not provide the realization of the right of Nagorno-Karabakh people to self-determination without any restrictions and which may endanger the security of the people of Karabakh. Armenia will not accept such proposals which envisage stage-by-stage settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict submitted before 2018. Moreover, since 2018 Armenia is not conducting negotiations on the basis of stage-by-stage settlement,” she said. 

According to her, Armenia has a clear vision of balanced, compromise-based and proportionate approaches that can lead to a just and sustainable settlement of the conflict. 

The Head of the opposition Bright Armenia party Edmon Marukyan stated that the Armenian government should clarify the issue. “I think Armenia’s MFA must demand clarifications from the Russian MFA, moreover, I think Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan must refer to the matter as it is a very speculated issue. It should be clarified in the… simplest way. I do not understand any authority in Armenia which will agree to the concessions fixed in the mentioned document,” he said. 

The Armenian political expert Suren Sargsyan considers that Lavrov’s statement implies certain pressures from the international community in regard to the issue. “I think the international community may exert some pressure on Armenia. The fact is that for two years the Armenian side claimed that negotiations are not being held and no document is on the table of negotiations,” he said. He added that the existing situation may be regulated only in case Armenia’s political leadership gives clear assessments – either rejects Lavrov’s statement or rejects the proposal. “After coronavirus retreats a bit, we may have another environment where we will understand whether the Armenian side negotiated during the past two years or not and whether there is a stage-by-stage option or not,” he concluded.

Critical voices towards Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov were also outed following Lavrov’s statement. The deputy in Azerbaijan’s Parliament Fazil Mustafa criticized Mammadyarov’s work and of the Azerbaijani MFA in general.  “For many years, in our national struggle, the president, then various political parties, NGOs, expert patriots, representatives of the diaspora who propagandize our just cause, try to reduce the effect of the Armenian lie most of all. In this struggle, only one structure remains invisible. And this is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and personally Minister Elmar Mammadyarov, who should be at the forefront of this struggle, since this is their official duty. Without diminishing the efforts of a number of our diplomats, who are selflessly working at lower levels, I can say with confidence that our Foreign Ministry behaves as a kind of company created by the OSCE Minsk Group,” he stated.

According to Mustafa, the Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov, without revealing the new theses and the essence, gives only toothless, inconsistent and repeating theses. “It is as if he is afraid or shy of decisively, reasonably and unequivocally expressing a position based on national interests. The occupying country Armenia is more tough and demanding, and our Ministry of Foreign Affairs is mainly guided by the principle of self-insurance. And he prefers criteria such as ‘constructiveness’ and a reluctance to spoil relations with someone. It’s as if it’s not the people and the head of Azerbaijan that want to satisfy with their activity, but the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, organizations that differ in their bias towards us,” he added.

Mustafa was in general very critical on how Azerbaijan’s diplomatic apparatus works. “Over the years, professional diplomats, who are tired of the inertia and unprofessional situation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, are leaving diplomatic activity. Employment in this ministry is completely opaque. The consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also works on the principle of bullying of citizens and bribery. I have repeatedly stated at plenary meetings of the Milli Majlis that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan is not able to support the offensive diplomacy conducted by the president of the country and to fulfil the tasks assigned to him. I can also say with confidence that it is not even interested in this,”  he emphasized.

Similar critiques were voiced by another Azerbaijani parliamentarian Javanshir Feyziyev. The Chairman of the Committee of the Azerbaijani Parliament on International and Inter-Parliamentary Relations Samad Seyidov even suggested holding meetings in parliamentary committees on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with the presence of Foreign Ministry representatives. The Azerbaijani Parliament Speaker Sahiba Gafarova said the parliament would consider the proposal. 

On 21 April, the Foreign Ministers of Armenia, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, and Azerbaijan, Elmar Mammadyarov, held a joint video conference with the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs and discussed the next steps in the settlement process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between the two countries. Prior to the video conference, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that there is currently a document on the table that provides a step-by-step solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Mnatsakanyan replied to the statements made by Lavrov by stating that the peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict is possible only through mutual concessions with a clear definition of status and security measures (Caucasus Watch reported).