A key step towards a peaceful resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has been taken. On November 2, the Armenian and Azeri presidents, Serzh Sarkisian and Ilham Aliyev, met outside Moscow to pledge their commitment to "a political settlement of the conflict based on the principles and norms of international law." It is hoped that the landmark and unprecedented agreement will put a stop to the aggressive rhetoric flying back and forth between Yerevan and Baku, as well as calling a halt to regular clashes on the Karabakh border.

The agreement, which is supported by the Russian Federation and meets the approval of the United States, is a declaration of political good will in which Sarkisian and Aliyev state their common goal of stepping up efforts to reach a political deal. The document makes no mention of the final status of Nagorno-Karabakh, a region with a majority Armenian population currently under Azeri administration which declared unilateral independence in 1991. Armenia and Azerbaijan have been at loggerheads over the disputed territory since 1989 and violent clashes have continued since full-scale warfare came to an end in 1994.

Talks were held for the first time in 2001 but discussions have so far failed to produce a road map for a peaceful resolution to one of the major conflicts of the South Caucasus. But the Nagorno-Karabakh declaration requires Armenia and Azerbaijan to "facilitate the improvement of the situation in the South Caucasus and establishment of stability and security in the region through a political settlement of the conflict".

The objective, then, has been established, but it remains to be seen which direction discussions will now take. Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia are unlikely to surrender the territory's independence and Baku is unlikely to give up a sizeable area of its territory, roughly 15% of the country. RFE/RL says that the declaration is a triumph for Armenia because it contains guarantees against an escalation of Azeri military activity in the area, one of Yerevan's major fears.

Photo: Aliyev, Medvedev and Sarkisian (from left to right) sign Nagorno-Karabakh declaration (www.kremlin.ru).

Further information:

• Nouvelles d'Arménie: L'Arménie et l'Azerbaïdjan signent une déclaration sur le Karabakh
• ArmeniaNow.com: Fast-lane diplomacy: Armenia, Azerbaijan agree to intensify efforts in Karabakh settlement
• BBC: Nagorno-Karabakh agreement signed
• MónDivers: L'Azerbaidjan i Armènia cercaran un «acord polític» a l'Alt Karabakh
• Nationalia: Nagorno-Karabakh independence on the agenda again