By Konul Khalilova
BBC Azeri.com
Hopes of a breakthrough in the long-running Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan are increasing as the presidents of the two countries prepare to meet this week at a European Union summit in Prague.
There is a sense of a window of an opportunity that must be seized.
The meeting is the culmination of a series of moves which has seen both sides edging towards a lasting peace.
It is also linked to a third player in a complicated diplomatic triangle: Turkey.
A rapprochement between Armenia and Turkey, which could lead to the opening of their joint border, has caused alarm in Azerbaijan, which has always had Turkey's sympathy over Nagorno-Karabakh.
We understand the importance of links between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh
Azeri President Ilham Aliyev
But at the same time, there are signs that the thaw may also unstick that frozen conflict.
The Azeri and Armenian foreign ministers have visited Washington this week for discussions with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
They follow recent talks between the two countries' leaders and their Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev, after which President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and President Serge Sarkisian of Armenia expressed their high hopes for a lasting peace.
'Ready to move'
A deal has been a long time coming.
A ceasefire was signed in 1994 after a three-year war which claimed up to 30,000 lives.
The Azeri population of Nagorno-Karabakh - an ethnic Armenian enclave within Azerbaijan - was displaced as a result of the war and now lives in different parts of the country.
Azerbaijan demands an immediate withdrawal of Armenian forces from the territory.
Armenia insists on the enclave's independence.
But now a peace plan has been drafted by the OSCE Minsk Group, which was set up to help settle the conflict.
One of the main issues to be solved is that of the Lachin corridor, the main transport route between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.
The president of Azerbaijan has made some unusually warm statements saying that "we understand the importance of links between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, and the issues regarding Lachin corridor can be resolved efficiently".
Mr Medvedev said that the parties were "ready to move in a constructive direction in order to solve this very difficult problem".
Matthew Bryza, the American co-chair of the Minsk group, sounds optimistic, saying that a framework for a peace accord between Azerbaijan and Armenia is "absolutely possible" within the next months.
Turkish influence
The meeting in Prague comes two weeks after Armenia and Turkey agreed on a roadmap to normalise relations.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, right, and President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, in Moscow, April 2009
President Aliyev (left) has had some unusually warm things to say about Armenia
Turkey closed its border with Armenia in 1993 in support of Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Turkey and Armenia started high-level talks last year but the real thaw came just weeks after US President Barack Obama urged Turkey to come to terms with the past and open its borders.
The "positive mood" created by the Turkish-Armenian roadmap "gives a new energy to accelerate our work to help resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict" according to US envoy Matthew Bryza.
The EU, which will formally launch a new Eastern Partnership this week with six former Soviet republics, including Azerbaijan and Armenia, has so far stood back from the Nagorno-Karabakh problem.
But the EU could gain a lot from a deal, as it attempts to secure energy supplies by completing the Nabucco gas pipeline project which would carry Caspian gas to European markets, reducing their dependency on Russia.
The opening of borders and easing tension in the region suits both the US and EU, as they attempt to prize Armenia gently away from Russian influence.
Limited window
However, there are problems to be overcome.
Azerbaijan hints that it is not happy at Turkey having the opening of the Armenian border "in mind", though Turkey continues to insist that this would be dependent on an end to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Azerbaijan also does not seem to be in the mood to make any concessions regarding its territory.
President Aliyev has said recently that self-determination of Azeris and Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh "can happen within the framework of territorial integrity of Azerbaijan" and the conflict can be resolved "only on this basis".
Rasim Musabeyov, an Azeri political pundit told the BBC Azeri Service that if this chance of settling both the Turkey-Armenia rift and the Nagorno-Karabakh problem is lost, "it might bring the region to the very brink of a new war".
Many experts believe that it will still take several months of intensive diplomatic effort involving the EU, US and Russia before any substantial breakthrough is made.
But if the negotiating parties fail to achieve a peace deal in the coming months and the window of opportunity closes, it is feared that the West, including the EU, may turn their political energies away from what may by then seem an intractable problem.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8034186.stm
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Toy
MY FIRST TOY IN AZERBAIJAN
**** A Quick Translation ***
Toy = Wedding
As early as orientation, PCVs, PC staff, host families, relatives of host families, the occasional over zealous Marşrutka (bus) driver, and several others, have mentioned how grand, and of course important Toys are in Azerbaijan. I’m very cautious about not making blanket statements, since there are so many variables to account within a culture, but this I can say with good amount of certainly, Azerbaijanis LOVE Toys!
I attended my first toy after moving to Lenkeran, and I was thrilled to get an invitation. Toys in Zerdab are a bit different then ones in Lenkeran. In Zerdab, family and close friends (mostly women) help prepare the meal that would then be taken to the Toy palace. So families usually just rent the space. In Lenkeran, the Toy palace prepares the meal and all the logistics for the night. Also, each family pays for their share of the cost for the wedding; as soon as you enter the wedding hall, there are two tables set up – one for the girl’s side and the other for the guy’s side. Each person pays anywhere between 20 to 50 AZN depending on the lavishness of the wedding.
The office manager at the Resource Center where I work invited me to the Toy. In preparation for the wedding, I took a shower (I always excited about shower days), I put on my most Azeri looking outfit, and I met the manager at her house so we could go together. As soon as walked into her house, Rasmia (the office manager), her sister, and the sister’s daughter looked me up and down, and were disappointed with the way I was dressed… according to them it was too “simple” (they say this to me all the time). So I was given a pair of jeans.
*** A little bit about the Azerbaijani Jeans ***
Very tight.
Lots of glitter and sequence.
I politely refused the jeans, but said I would wear them on a different occasion, and this seemed to placate them for a little while. Since I wasn’t wearing the jeans, I had to make up for it in cosmetics. Oh ya. I let the daughter doll me up. As you can see I look like a clown!
There weren’t any mirrors around so I couldn’t assess the damage till I got to the Toy palace. Eating makes me feel better, and I ate a lot! Meals come out in courses, and I always forget to pace myself…
*** THE MENU ***
1. Paytax Salat = Capital Salad. Mayo, sour cream, corn, bits of chicken, chunks of potatoes, peas, cilantro, carrots, and other veggies.
2. Toyuk Lavange = Roasted Chicken with tart stuffing.
3. Mal Ati Kabobs = Beef Kabobs
4. Təndir Çörək = Bread made in a large hole in the ground using coal as the heat source.
5. Plov – Rice, served with caramelized onions, meat, raisins, hazelnuts, and BUTTER.
YUM!
I made an interesting observation at the weeding; in America we work so hard to individualize our weddings. Everything from the invitations, to the cake, the flowers, the dress, the hair reflects on the couples personality or interests. It wasn’t the same at the wedding I attended, and I have a feeling that is the norm. They rolled out the same white sheet they do for every happy couple, the staff strategically placed the same pink plastic flowers along the runway, the balloons were let out on cue, it was a standard cake sitting on a plastic frame with hearts… Of course there are cultural aspects i.e. the red ribbon tied around the bride’s waist; the twirling man who presents the couple with a plate of rice lit on fire; and other things I’m sure I missed to account for ‘cause I was too busy stuffing my face with the delicious food.
**** A Quick Translation ***
Toy = Wedding
As early as orientation, PCVs, PC staff, host families, relatives of host families, the occasional over zealous Marşrutka (bus) driver, and several others, have mentioned how grand, and of course important Toys are in Azerbaijan. I’m very cautious about not making blanket statements, since there are so many variables to account within a culture, but this I can say with good amount of certainly, Azerbaijanis LOVE Toys!
I attended my first toy after moving to Lenkeran, and I was thrilled to get an invitation. Toys in Zerdab are a bit different then ones in Lenkeran. In Zerdab, family and close friends (mostly women) help prepare the meal that would then be taken to the Toy palace. So families usually just rent the space. In Lenkeran, the Toy palace prepares the meal and all the logistics for the night. Also, each family pays for their share of the cost for the wedding; as soon as you enter the wedding hall, there are two tables set up – one for the girl’s side and the other for the guy’s side. Each person pays anywhere between 20 to 50 AZN depending on the lavishness of the wedding.
The office manager at the Resource Center where I work invited me to the Toy. In preparation for the wedding, I took a shower (I always excited about shower days), I put on my most Azeri looking outfit, and I met the manager at her house so we could go together. As soon as walked into her house, Rasmia (the office manager), her sister, and the sister’s daughter looked me up and down, and were disappointed with the way I was dressed… according to them it was too “simple” (they say this to me all the time). So I was given a pair of jeans.
*** A little bit about the Azerbaijani Jeans ***
Very tight.
Lots of glitter and sequence.
I politely refused the jeans, but said I would wear them on a different occasion, and this seemed to placate them for a little while. Since I wasn’t wearing the jeans, I had to make up for it in cosmetics. Oh ya. I let the daughter doll me up. As you can see I look like a clown!
There weren’t any mirrors around so I couldn’t assess the damage till I got to the Toy palace. Eating makes me feel better, and I ate a lot! Meals come out in courses, and I always forget to pace myself…
*** THE MENU ***
1. Paytax Salat = Capital Salad. Mayo, sour cream, corn, bits of chicken, chunks of potatoes, peas, cilantro, carrots, and other veggies.
2. Toyuk Lavange = Roasted Chicken with tart stuffing.
3. Mal Ati Kabobs = Beef Kabobs
4. Təndir Çörək = Bread made in a large hole in the ground using coal as the heat source.
5. Plov – Rice, served with caramelized onions, meat, raisins, hazelnuts, and BUTTER.
YUM!
I made an interesting observation at the weeding; in America we work so hard to individualize our weddings. Everything from the invitations, to the cake, the flowers, the dress, the hair reflects on the couples personality or interests. It wasn’t the same at the wedding I attended, and I have a feeling that is the norm. They rolled out the same white sheet they do for every happy couple, the staff strategically placed the same pink plastic flowers along the runway, the balloons were let out on cue, it was a standard cake sitting on a plastic frame with hearts… Of course there are cultural aspects i.e. the red ribbon tied around the bride’s waist; the twirling man who presents the couple with a plate of rice lit on fire; and other things I’m sure I missed to account for ‘cause I was too busy stuffing my face with the delicious food.
Life in Pictures (Birthdays)
Sara's 25th Birthday =)
We celebrated her birthday with the students who attended our club.
My 23rd Birthday!
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