Armenian expert: U.S. stance on Karabakh remains unchanged
The stance of the U.S. administrations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has remained unchanged for 30 years, Armenian foreign affairs analyst Suren Sargsyan told a conference on the 35th anniversary of the Karabakh movement on Monday, February 20.
"The U.S. has always insisted on the conflict settlement in any way possible. He says if you have so much power and opportunities to solve the problem on the basis of the peoples’ right to self-determination, then do it. If Azerbaijan is able to resolve the issue based on the principle of territorial integrity, then let it do so, I don't care, it is important that the problem be solved," the expert said.
The Unites States believes the Karabakh conflict settlement and the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations would reduce Russia’s influence in the South Caucasus and would eventually push the country out of the region, Sargsyan claims.
"This is a policy run by the U.S. since the rule of America's 43rd President George W. Bush. Nothing has changed to date. It’s part of a geopolitical race involving superpowers, which is everywhere, and Armenia and the South Caucasus region are no exception. The U.S. is seizing these opportunities now," the expert said, highlighting the intensified Armenian-American high-level contacts.
Talking about the current situation in the region, Sargsyan charged that Armenia has accepted all the preconditions put forward by Turkey, the U.S. sees an opportunity for the Armenian-Turkish normalization and will naturally support any process leading to the final settlement of the Karabakh issue and Armenian-Turkish relations.
"The US has two plans in the region: the maximum plan is to kick Russia out of the region, while the minimum plan is to create a balance. In case of Russia's ouster, the U.S. will not be physically present in the region, but will act here through its only regional ally, Turkey. I think it's clear what global processes are going on and what all this will lead to,” the analyst stated.