MEPs were united on Wednesday 7 October in calling for an immediate ceasefire and a return to the negotiating table without conditions and without delay between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh.
“The use of violence is unacceptable. The only lasting solution is a negotiated solution that involves dialogue and diplomacy”, said Urmas Paet (Renew Europe, Estonia), adding that, for the moment, the only result of the fighting is “the suffering of the civilian population”.
Several MEPs, including Andrey Kovatchev (EPP, Bulgaria) and Viola von Cramon-Taubadel (Greens/EFA, Germany), stressed the importance of respecting territorial integrity and the right of peoples to self-determination. “Two opposing principles” in this case, she recalled.
MEPs also called on actors in the region to help calm the situation, expressing concern about the role played by Turkey and allegations of shipments of Syrian fighters.
And if the peace negotiations are to be held under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group, they reiterated that the EU should not stand idly by. “Not having a formal role in the negotiations does not mean you don’t have to be active, to speak out very clearly”, warned Marina Kaljurand (S&D, Estonia), chair of the European Parliament’s delegation to the EU-Armenia Parliamentary Partnership and EU-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committees, recalling that both countries are members of the Eastern Partnership.
For Mr Paet, while the EU should continue to assist countries to alleviate the suffering of their citizens and put an end to “this historic hatred", “which cannot be done in times of war”.
For her part, Mrs von Cramon-Taubadel called on the EU to help the population and provide humanitarian aid, and Idoia Villanueva Ruiz (GUE/NGL, Spain) considered that the Union must act in coordination with civil society organisations and neighbouring countries.
In response, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, promised that he would convey these messages to the EU foreign ministers at the EU Council meeting on 12 October.
He recalled, however, that the European Council of 1 October had identified the OSCE Minsk Group as the framework for the negotiations. “We must let this group work, as it is the only one that has been recognised by both sides”, the High Representative explained, adding that the EU would do its utmost to support this group, and that the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus, Toivo Klaar, is in contact with Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Mr Borrell also made no secret of his concern about the deteriorating situation, including the announcement by Azerbaijani Minister Jeyhun Bayramov that fighting would continue until Armenia agreed to a concrete timetable for withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh as a “precondition for talks”. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)