09 February 2004, 12:07
Ilkham Aliyev: no compromises or haste in settling Karabakh conflict
Azerbaijan President Ilkham Aliyev said that he was not an advocate of compromises or haste in settling the Karabakh conflict.
"I'm no advocate of compromises in this question," the head of state said in an interview with reporters at the Baku international airport on his return from Moscow on February 8.
He emphasized that the international law and justice are on the side of Azerbaijan. "Times are changing, and if we assess this from the viewpoint of the development of the country's economic potential, time also works on our side," Ilkham Aliyev continued.
"I believe that we should not make haste, we should wait," the Azerbaijan president noted, adding that he was in no hurry personally. He expressed confidence that "Azerbaijan will achieve what it desires by consolidating the country's economic potential and settling problems connected with this."
"We want to settle the conflict peacefully," Ilkham Aliyev said. He specially stressed at the same time that the settlement is possible "only under the condition of restoring territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and the withdrawal of invading forces from the occupied lands."
The head of state expressed hope that following his visits to Paris and Moscow, the OSCE Minsk Group on Nagorny Karabakh, whose co-chairmen France and Russia are, would step up its activities. "Both the French and Russian presidents assured me that they were interested in settling this conflict," Mr Aliyev underlined.
He noted he was waiting for new proposals from the Minsk Group. "The Minsk Group should not act as a detached onlooker," the president said. He did not preclude a chance that new peaceful initiatives would follow in the near future.
Source: ITAR-TASS News Agency
