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“On one hand, we should show that mechanisms not allowing the repetition of the April events have been created. On the other hand, we should show Azerbaijan that the current situation doesn’t mean that the negotiation process has been completely frozen. Yet conditions should be created for the real negotiations to resume,” political scientist Sergey Minasyan commented on the trilateral meeting of Presidents of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan in Saint Petersburg on June 20, adding that the outcome of the meeting was predictable.

According to the political scientist, Moscow’s main aim was to confirm its leading role both in the negotiations process and within the framework of OSCE Minsk Group.

“On the other hand, the presence of the Co-Chairs and the joint statement of the Presidents showed that the RF wants to show that it has a leading role. However Moscow doesn’t have any intention of undermining the Minsk format,” Minasyan said.

Concerning the outcome of the meeting, the political scientist said that the expectations weren’t high. He also noted that hoping for a serious progress isn’t realistic either.

According to Minasyan, the expectations concerning Russia pushing Yerevan to make unilateral concessions didn’t correspond with the reality.

“Russia is perfectly aware that all this cannot lead to the settlement of the conflict and will make things more difficult, especially for the Kremlin,” Sergey Minasyan noted.

The political scientist thinks that Baku is facing a dilemma, either to accept the status-quo and try to represent the April events to its nation as a serious success or to go for a further escalation.

Speaking about the joint statement made after the meeting, the political scientist noted that it was quite successful, as it included all the important and necessary points without undermining the interests of either party.