Russia strives to diversify regional risks, relying on Baku and Yerevan simultaneously, said Alexei Vlasov, director of the Information-Analytical Center for Research of Post-Soviet Social and Political Processes.
“Armenia means economy and trade, geopolitical influence, but Azerbaijan – energy. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict doesn’t correspond to this framework of diversification because it is impossible to settle the conflict supporting both sides,” APA news agency quotes the expert.
According to him, Russia follows the principle “not to have all eggs in one basket”. “I don’t see prospects of the conflict solution at the present stage. The regular meetings between the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents, as well as tripartite meeting attended by the Russian president allow to freeze this conflict and to prevent military confrontation. Russia should continue to be main moderator of force in the region because of historic reasons,” Vlasov added.
He also considers that the Karabakh issue will be one of the key topics on the agenda of forthcoming OSC summit in Astana. “Within a year Kazakhstan has tried to prepare a roadmap, but I think even if this issue is discussed in December, it will not be one of the major themes of discussion. The reason is that the co-chairs have not eliminated the divergences,” the source quotes the Russian expert.
According to him, there is a pause in the peace process. Vlasov deems that aggravation of situation regarding Iran is one of the reasons for Russia’s maneuvers in its policy on South Caucasus.
