15:33     05 July 2021    

All maps of the minefields of the territories that were liberated as a result of the Second Karabakh war must be unconditionally transferred to the Azerbaijani side.

All maps of the minefields of the territories that were liberated as a result of the Second Karabakh war must be unconditionally transferred to the Azerbaijani side. This is not an Armenian gift to Azerbaijan, but is part of the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan of November 9, 2020, concluded at the initiative of Russia. At the same time, the probability that all minefield maps are in the General Staff of Armenia is very high. It is unlikely that there are no maps at all. Because the entire officer corps of Armenia - senior officers were trained in the Soviet army. In accordance with Soviet and Russian charters, when laying mines, two versions of minefield maps must be created. One option should remain in the unit, the other option should be transferred to the General Staff. These maps exist. Perhaps, during the retreat, the Armenian forces could bombard some fields with mines, mines the territories in a chaotic manner. But the number of such mines should be very small. And the overwhelming majority of them were delivered systematically within the framework of Armenia's construction of its defense in Karabakh. At the same time, Azerbaijan almost completely fulfilled all its obligations under the peace treaty of November 9-10, stopping the military offensive on the surrounded group of the Armenian army. Armenia must also fulfill its obligations, including the transfer of maps of minefields. However, we can see that there is a delay. This delay occurs on the part of Armenia, firstly, because the transfer of maps of minefields is, in the eyes of the public opinion of Armenia, yet another concession to Azerbaijan. The second reason is that the Armenian leadership wants to bargain something from Azerbaijan as a retaliatory measure. Russia is actively working to ensure that the transfer of maps of minefields takes place, so that options for transport corridors are developed, which were agreed from the very beginning. And although the issue is not progressing fast enough, the slowdowns are not dramatized in any way in Russia. In Russia, they are highly confident that in the end, within a fairly foreseeable time frame, it will be possible to solve the problem of maps of minefields. Moscow proceeds from the premise that there should be a progressive development in the implementation of these agreements. Russia will continue to negotiate and ensure that the minefield maps are transferred from Armenia to Azerbaijan. The problem of demarcation of borders between Armenia and Azerbaijan is considered new in public opinion. Among Russian specialists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, this problem is considered completely normal and natural. This is due to the fact that all Post-Soviet countries settled their border issues at the very beginning for quite a long time. For some countries, it took more than 10 years to resolve border disputes. A vivid example of the need to solve even unsolvable problems is the situation with the hydroelectric power station between Georgia and Abkhazia. There, the border was established as a result of bloody fighting, which included massive bloody ethnic cleansing. Nevertheless, the parties, who do not recognize each other at all, were able to agree through the mediation of Russia. At the same time, they manage to regulate the management of this power plant and electricity is supplied equally to both sides. As we can see, the Russian negotiators have very extensive experience in resolving such complex border issues. This experience will be put at the service of Azerbaijan and Armenia, the fraternal peoples and countries of Russia, for the settlement of these border issues. You just need to prepare for the fact that this will not be done for several weeks, months. This may take quite a long time, open and closed negotiation formats. But still, with a high probability, they will end in success. The issue of delimitation and demarcation of the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia will be resolved. There is no doubt that Russia will resolve this issue. In this regard, there is even a high degree of hope that international organizations such as the OSCE and UN structural organizations will provide assistance to both Azerbaijan and Armenia, as the main mediator in reaching agreements on this issue. There are still very difficult negotiations on transport corridors ahead. There is a complex interconnected junction and these transport corridors may still have different routes. There are concerns of one side, whose cargo will go along the transport corridor. It is about the safety of these goods. On the other hand, there are concerns from the other side, through whose territory the transport corridor will go. These issues seem to be an order of magnitude more complicated than negotiations on border demarcation and delimitation. The author is a well-known Russian public figure, political scientist, Director general of the Institute for Political Research. bakutribune.com

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