The Azg newspaper interviewed Armenian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Arman Kirakosyan concerning the referendum in Southern Sudan and latest developments in some Arab countries. Below is Mr. Kirakosyan`s opinion.

Question: What are your comments on the situation, and would the experience of Southern Sudan be acceptable to Nagorno-Karabakh?

In 2005, after a 20-year-long civil war in Sudan, the government forces representing the northern regions of the country signed a comprehensive peace agreement with the insurgents of the southern regions. Under the agreement, a referendum on self-determination of oil-bearing Southern Sudan was to be held. The referendum was held on January 11, 2011. Mohamed Ibrahim Khalil, Chairman of the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission, stated that over 99% of the participants in the referendum in the southern regions voted for secession.

The referendum, or rather, an agreement between the north and the south, was preceded by 22-year-long hostilities. The Sudanese authorities proposed holding a referendum on January 9-15, and a relevant agreement was reached under the agreement reached between the Sudanese Government and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army in January 2005. They planned to hold a referendum six years after the agreement was signed.

The 6-year-long transition was planned to make Sudan`s unity attractive to the south. Another document was signed setting requirements for citizens enjoying the right to vote at the referendum.

The official results will be announced on February 14, and almost 99% of the ballots have been counted. The general results are clear.

So one more international entity is sure to join the international community soon, and Southern Sudan`s independence is expected to be proclaimed this July. As regards parallels between Southern Sudan and Nagorno-Karabakh, the Armenian authorities have repeatedly stated that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is different from other conflicts – the Nagorno-Karabakh people declared independence as far back as 1991.

The Sudanese authorities stated their readiness to accept any results and exert efforts to put them into practice. Southern Sudan is one more proof is that peoples’ right to self-determination cannot be inferior to other international legal norms. Moreover, recent years have seen formation of new states as a result of exercise of this right. The Sudanese authorities and international community admit this fact, so Azerbaijan has to admit it as well.