EU Seeks New Talks on Nagorno-Karabakh

Facts

• On Thursday, Charles Michel — president of the European Council of EU leaders — revealed that he had invited Armenian Prime Minister Nikos Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to meet in Brussels by the end of October to discuss the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.¹
• Following a 24-hour campaign by Azerbaijani forces in the contested territory of Nagorno-Karabakh beginning on Sept. 19, over 100K individuals — more than 80% of the region's population — are believed to have traveled to Armenia. The conflict between the two countries over the territory initially began in 1988 following the fall of the USSR.²
• Speaking to reporters at the summit of the European Political Community in Granada, Spain, Michel stated: 'We believe in diplomacy. We believe in political dialogue.'³
• Five-way talks between Armenia, Azerbaijan, the EU, France, and Germany were previously scheduled to take place in Granada, with officials in Baku describing Aliyev's absence as down to an 'anti-Azerbaijani atmosphere.' Azerbaijani state media also said Tuesday that Aliyev would attend three-way talks with Armenia but none that include France.⁴
• While Michel claimed that the EU was to be a 'neutral mediator, with no agenda' on the matter, the news comes as the European Parliament adopted a resolution accusing Azerbaijani troops of 'ethnic cleansing' and engaging in 'threats and violence.'⁵
• President Aliyev refrained from attending the summit, alongside diplomatic ally Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who said he had fallen ill with a cold. Josep Borrell, the EU's highest-ranking diplomat, described the lack of presence by both as 'a shame.'⁶

Sources: ¹Reuters, ²Associated Press, ³Al Jazeera, ⁴Dw.com, ⁵France 24 and ⁶Euronews.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by The armenian mirror. While EU officials continue to state their 'concerns' surrounding ongoing events in Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenians cannot help but feel angered by years of pleading for help and assistance falling on deaf ears. The EU is well aware of Azerbaijan's policy of ethnic cleansing and yet continues its mantra of apathy in the face of a potential genocide. The EU must make a clear decision to protect human rights and the values of democracy it has so often championed in rhetoric, or else completely undermine the justification for its very existence.
• Narrative B, as provided by Azernews.az. If the EU and its consequent member-states and officials are incapable of achieving any concrete policy success in Granada, Azerbaijan must question why it would listen to its veiled demands for discussions in favor of Armenia. Unfounded allegations against Azerbaijan continue to be leveraged by Armenia worldwide without confrontation as it continues to refuse to acknowledge Baku's sovereign right to Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan is not the problem when it comes to establishing peaceful coexistence.