The Karabakh talks have continued for 20 years and will last for a long time yet, said the Director of the Russian Institute of Strategic Studies (RISS) Leonid Reshetnikov.

According to him, it is a long process and the resolution of the conflict depends on Armenia and Azerbaijan only, as they have to find a compromise-based way out. “You can see example of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili refused a peaceful settlement of the problem and lost these territories forever. This example is obvious to everyone,” the expert said. As to whether Russia will recognize Karabakh, as it did with South Ossetia and Abkhazia, if Aliyev “loses control of himself” and resumes hostilities in Karabkh, the expert said, “Aliyev is not Saakashvili. They are different persons. It is obvious that something is wrong with Saakashvili. I hope no one’s nerves will crack,” Reshetnikov noted.

The expert stressed that no external force, regardless of its geographical location, can influence the solution to the problem. No force can press Yerevan or and Baku for a certain decision, he stressed.

Roundtable discussions on the Russian-Armenian cooperation and regional problems with the participation of Armenian and Russian experts and representatives of political circles were held in Yerevan.