New York Times discloses Azerbaijan’s and Armenia’s reaction on Israeli analyst’s article

Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 17 By Elmira Tariverdiyeva – Trend: The U.S authoritative edition The New York Times disclosed the reaction of Azerbaijan and Armenia on Israeli political analyst Brenda Shaffer’s article "Russia’s Next Land Grab" published on September 10. In her article, Shaffer assesses the situation in connection with the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The New York Times published the letters sent by Azerbaijani ambassador to the U.S Elin Suleymanov and press-secretary of the Armenian embassy Anna Naghdalyan to the editors. “Brenda Shaffer is right to call for a more active United States engagement in resolving the protracted Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict,” Suleymanov’s letter says. “Yet she doesn’t clearly identify the real aggressor in this situation, which is Armenia.” Armenia doesn’t just “control” some 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized territory; it illegally occupies it. This territory has been subject to thorough ethnic cleansing, a fact widely acknowledged by numerous international legal documents, including Security Council resolutions, the letter says. “Ms. Shaffer shouldn’t be trying to draw unfortunate parallels between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” he wrote. “Instead, as an expert on the region, she should know that the best way to move the peace process forward is to begin the withdrawal of Armenian forces from Azerbaijan’s occupied territories.” The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four U.N. Security Council resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.