Azerbaijan protests "US attempts to revive the OSCE Minsk Group"
Azerbaijan’s reaction to Blinken’s statement
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has announced the appointment of a new co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry stated flatly that attempts to “reanimate” the practically inactive Minsk Group could lead to the US moving away from the process of normalizing Azerbaijani-Armenian relations. According to political scientist Elkhan Shahinoglu, Washington’s insistence on the issue could cause tension in relations between Azerbaijan and the United States.
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Blinken announced the appointment of Philip Reeker as Chief Negotiation Adviser in the Caucasus and Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group from the United States.
After the end of the second Karabakh war, the Azerbaijani authorities repeatedly stated that the Minsk Group had failed in its mission and there was no longer any need for it. Former Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared that the institution of Minsk Group co-chairs could not function under specific geopolitical conditions.
Reaction Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, through Leyla Abdullayeva, lodged a protest against the move.
“US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s announcement of Philip Reeker’s appointment as chief negotiating adviser in the Caucasus is surprising, as it demonstrates an approach that is far from the post-conflict reality in the region,” Abdullayeva said.
“Azerbaijan’s position on the Minsk Group has been repeatedly and clearly expressed at the highest level.
“Attempts to “reanimate” the virtually inactive Minsk Group may lead to the US moving away from the process of normalizing Azerbaijani-Armenian relations.
“The Karabakh conflict has been resolved and Karabakh is an integral part of Azerbaijan. The international community, including our partners, must understand that tying negotiations on the normalization of Azerbaijani-Armenian relations to the Karabakh issue in no way serves this process,” she added.
Expert opinion
According to Azerbaijani political scientist and head of the Atlas analytical center Elkhan Shahinoglu, after the end of the second Karabakh war Baku rightly refused the “services” of the OSCE Minsk Group:
“Because of the international sanctions that Russia faced for its occupation of Ukraine, the Kremlin also abandoned the institution of co-chairs jointly with the United States. Even France, which sympathizes with Armenia, understood the futility of the Minsk Group under existing conditions. Only the third co-chair, Washington, never ceases to amaze.
“The fact that Reeker has been appointed negotiator for the Caucasus is normal, Azerbaijan is not opposed to any mediation efforts in the matter of rapprochement with Armenia, but the expression “co-chair of the Minsk Group” spoils the matter.
“There is no such group, and it is not just about us. Russia does not want to sit at the same table with the United States.”
Shahinoglu gave an example from his dialogue with an American diplomat:
“I asked him why the US does not abandon the Minsk Group? And I tried to explain Washington’s could create unnecessary tension in Azerbaijan’s relations with the United States. And this, in turn, will lead to a strengthening Russia’s role in the region, which would not meet American interests.
“The American diplomat answered that the Kremlin said “no” to the Minsk Group, and therefore Washington is forced to say that the group should continue its activities.
“Again, I tried to explain to the diplomat that Azerbaijan is not against American activity in the South Caucasus, and for this there are many tools outside the Minsk Group, and we must use them.”
Azerbaijan’s reaction to Blinken’s statement
