ARMENIAN PRIME MINISTER VOICES SUPPORT FOR OSCE

C O N F I D E N T I A L YEREVAN 001000 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/CARC E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/24/2016 TAGS: PREL PGOV AJ AM SUBJECT: ARMENIAN PRIME MINISTER VOICES SUPPORT FOR OSCE MINSK GROUP INITIATIVES IN NAGORNO KARABAKH REF: YEREVAN 991 Classified By: DCM A.F. Godfrey for reason 1.4 (b,d) ¶1. (SBU) Addressing the extraordinary congress of Republican Party of Armenia (reftel),the chairman of the party, Prime Minister Andranik Markarian, spoke about the resolution of the Nagorno Karabakh (NK) conflict, reiterating that the most recent proposals put forth by the OSCE Minsk group (namely the withdrawal of Armenian troops from some of regions surrounding NK, deployment of an international peacekeeping contingent and a referendum to decide the final status of NK) are "largely acceptable for Armenia and might serve as an initial framework for further negotiations." ¶2. (SBU) Markarian added that the conflict must be resolved based on: "the peaceful settlement of the conflict, international recognition of right to self-determination for the people of Nagorno Karabakh, a land corridor between Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh and a common border between Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia." According to the PM, Nagorno Karabakh must "never return to Azeri jurisdiction, must receive international guarantees of security for its population, and the peace deal cannot be reached at the expense of Armenian borders." The prime minister said that in any circumstances his Republican Party would only support solutions that were acceptable to the Armenian public. ¶3. (C) Comment: Markarian's remarks stand out not because they represent a change in Armenian policy (they don't),but because he spoke openly about the withdrawal of Armenian troops from NK. The lack of negative public reaction in the media to these statements may also be an indicator that the Armenian public is increasingly willing to be realistic about what will be necessary for any possible future peace agreement. EVANS