The Armenian delegation faced difficulties participating in the meeting of the Socialist International’s Committee for the CIS, the Caucasus and the Black Sea.  

Representatives from Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Greece, Sweden, Kazakhstan and Hungary took part in the opening session of the committee meeting which was later halted as the committee’s co-chair Mario Nalbandian had had difficulties entering Azerbaijan because “problems had emerged,” which were later resolved and the meeting resumed. The representative of the Social Democratic Party of Azerbaijan apologetically considered the problem a “technical mistake.”

Before the beginning of the session a large number of news agencies were mainly interested to know about the Karabakh issue and Armenian-Turkish relations from the ARF-D delegation. Referring to Armenian-Turkish relations, Giro Manoyan expressed hope that one day dialogue would take place but prior to that Turkey is obligated to refrain from all preconditions. “In order for diplomatic relations to be established between Yerevan and Ankara, Turkey must refrain from preconditions, otherwise it will not be possible to have any kind of relations between the two countries,” Giro Manoyan said.

The main issue on the agenda was dedicated to issues of regional peace and security. Although the main theme of the session was about Artsakh, there were also some discussions regarding South Ossetia.

All those who spoke during the session stressed the importance of this meeting and the meeting which took place in Yerevan in June where Armenians and Azerbaijanis had the opportunity for dialogue. In response to the discontent expressed by the Azerbaijani representative regarding the OSCE Minsk Group’s proposals, Giro Manoyan noted that Azerbaijan is displeased by the co-chair’s proposals because they do not foresee the possibility of Karabakh remaining within Azerbaijan’s structure. Mr. Manoyan also stressed that Karabakh was never a part of Azerbaijan, to which the Azerbaijani representative responded irritably.

The Secretary General of Socialist International Luis Ayalla welcomed the heated discussion between the two sides and summarizing the results of the session attached great importance to the meetings of the committee and expressed hope that although there are disagreements and the position of the sides are still far apart, Armenians and Azerbaijanis can come to an agreement that will contribute to the strengthening of peace and stability in the region.

It was anticipated that representatives of Turkey’s CHP party would participate in the SI’s committee meeting in Baku however they were absent just as they were during the committee meeting in Yerevan.

Azerbaijani news outlets began distorting Giro Manoyan’s statements, in particular that he apparently characterized the Karabakh conflict as one between Azerbaijan and Armenia. In all his statements and during all interviews, Mr. Manoyan clearly stated that the conflict was between Karabakh and Azerbaijan.

The ARF-Dashnaktsutyun rejoined the Socialist International in September 1996, which it had originally joined in 1907. In 2003, the ARF-D became a full member of the Socialist International, thus becoming the only party in the CIS with such a status.

During the XXIII Congress of the Socialist International in Athens, June 2008, ARF-D representative Maria Titizian was elected vice-president of the organization. The SI Council in Mexico, November 2008, elected ARF-D Bureau member Mario Nalpatian as co-chair of the SI Committee for the CIS, the Caucasus and the Black Sea, ARFD press service reported.