Czech Ambassador: The issue of the return of the territories around  Nagorno-Karabakh is on the agenda of the Madrid Principles

ArmInfo.The issue of the return of the territories around Nagorno-Karabakh is on the agenda of the Madrid principles on the negotiating table. On October 18  Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Armenia Petr Mikiska stated this  at a press conference in Yerevan, referring to the last statement of  the US Ambassador Richard Mills.

He expressed bewilderment over the fact why this statement caused  such a concern in Armenian society.  "The issue of the return of the  territories is among the provisions of the Madrid principles that are  on the agenda of the talks today. I believe that the issue of  resolving the conflict should follow these principles, which involve  step-by-step implementation of all items. To be honest, I am not  familiar with the statement of Mills, and I can not comment on it.  But, the question of the return of the territories, as far as I know,  was on the agenda of the talks", the diplomat noted.

He also stated that Mills is the ambassador of the country, which is  one of the mediators in resolving the conflict. "The United States,  along with France and Russia as co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, is  more involved than other countries in the conflict resolution  process. However, other countries also follow the situation. I  consider it important that the OSCE MG is involved in the conflict  resolution process," he concluded.

To recall, US Ambassador Richard Mills who is terminating his  diplomatic mission in Armenia, in an interview with EVN, speaking of  the Karabakh settlement, made remarkable statements. In particular,  referring to ways to resolve the conflict, he emphasized the need to  return the "occupied territories": "The settlement of the conflict is  impossible without the return of a certain part of the occupied  territories. The issue of the return of the occupied territories is  one of the fundamental points of the Madrid principles.  When I  arrived in Armenia, found that most Armenians are categorically  against the return of the occupied territories. It seems to me that  we are taking a step back. My government for many years considered  that these territories were originally taken, to later be used as  part of the formula of "land - for peace," and I was very surprised  when I discovered that this formula does not find public support in  Armenia ",  the diplomat said.

He also stressed that the April war of 2016 consolidated this  position of the Armenians even more. "Now it will be much more  difficult to resolve this issue, but the harsh reality is that any  settlement requires the return of a certain part of the occupied  territories," the diplomat said. At the same time, he stressed that  the status quo no longer proceeds from the interests of Armenia,  since in the context of closed borders and limited human and material  resources, corruption risks increase. "Corruption is not born and  thrives, because people are bad, but because there are appropriate  conditions for this," the diplomat said.