Statement by Armenian President R. Kocharian at the UN Millenium Summit,
7 September 2000


Armenia remains committed to the peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict. We will continue to work intensively with the Co-Chairs of the Minsk Group, and we underscore their contribution to maintaining the cease-fire regime. Equally, we are ready to maintain direct contacts with Azerbaijan in order to search for compromises, although we think that direct negotiation between Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabagh would be more productive, especially taking into account the fact that Nagorno-Karabagh is a de facto established and open for a dialogue state.

In this connection I would like to specially mention that the situation around Nagorno-Karabagh today is a consequence of the Azerbaijani aggression of 1991-92 aimed at the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian population, as well as a consequence of the Azerbaijani refusal to accept the recent proposals by the mediators in the conflict.

The contemporary history of conflict resolutions reflects the changing nature of inter- and intrastate relations. It clearly displays the necessity of breaking through the frameworks of conventional perceptions of sovereignty. In this context, we are confident that the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict can only be materialised on the basis of the legal equality of the parties to the conflict.