17:48, 4 December 2003

Armenian Foreign Minister: "We are interested in the stability in Georgia not less that the Georgians themselves"

On December 1, at the 11th Ministerial Council meeting of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Foreign Minister of Armenia Vardan Oskanian touched upon the OSCE's economic policy and organization's strategy to solve threats to security and stability in the 21st century, as well as upon documents on trafficking, the Armenian Foreign Ministry's press service informs.

In his speech, the minister also placed high emphasis on the issues concerned with Georgia and Nagorny Karabakh. In particular, he was quoted as saying, "Georgia is our neighbor and friend. It is a homeland for half a million of ethnic Armenians. Our main routes to Europe and the world pass thought Georgia. Therefore, we are interested in the stability in Georgia not less that the Georgians themselves."

As for the problem of Nagorny Karabakh, the minister said, "Whereas the unsettled Karabakh conflict is often referred to as a factor of instability in the region, Nagorny Karabakh itself is a stable and full-fledged unit, which can make its contribution to the cause of achieving peace."

Author: Ashot Ter-Grigorian, CK correspondent

Source: Caucasian Knot