STEPANAKERT, NKR—The personal representative of the OSCE chairman-in-office, Andrzej Kasprzyk, recently called for an end to threats of war and said authorities in Stepanakert have always been kept abreast of the developments related to the Nagorno-Karabagh peace process.

“First of all, it’s necessary to decrease the threat of war,” Kasprzyk said in an interview with the Polish Nowa Europa Wschodnia (New Eastern Europe), commenting on the situation in Karabagh. Having participated in the peace talks for 10 years, Kasprzyk said the parties are closer to solving the issue today.

Before signing the final treaty, there is the question of the interim status of Karabagh. The special status cannot considerably differ from the current status of Karabagh, he said.

Speaking about concessions, Kasprzyk said that after the signing of a framework agreement, it will be necessary to negotiate the details.

“There are still a number of unsolved issues. For example, when we are speaking about the corridor linking Armenia to Nagorno-Karabagh, it’s clear that it should remain. Azerbaijan officially agrees to this. However, it’s necessary to come to an agreement on the details, i.e. the width of the corridor or who should control it before the peace deal is concluded,” he explained.

Kasprzyk noted that a referendum is another problem. “Armenians see it as a simple voting with the participation of the population of Nagorno-Karabagh as it was during the census of 1989. Baku insists, in turn, that it should be held all over the territory of Azerbaijan.”

“The Karabagh conflict is not frozen. What is frozen is its settlement. According to my assessment, 36 people have died on both sides over the past year. I interfered in the situation several times, when the exchange of fire could have grown into large-scale confrontation. Then I called Washington, Paris, and Moscow to try to stop it,” he added.

Speaking about the role of Moscow, Kasprzyk said Russia aims to relieve the tension. “The whole Caucasus is mined today. The outburst of the Karabagh conflict would further destabilize the situation in the north Caucasus.”

“The black-and-white idea that Russia supports Armenians, while Turkey backs Azerbaijan is too primitive,” he said.

According to Kasprzyk, nothing is being done without the consent of Stepanakert. “They are always well informed, their position is being taken into consideration. When it comes to concrete results, they should be accepted by Karabagh.”