YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)–Armenians Defense Minister Serge Sargsian–who also serves as the country’s National Security Council Secretary–said that recently emerging fears that a Karabagh resolution would not favor the Armenia’side are "completely unfounded."
In an interview with the Aravot newspaper–he noted that a resolution to the conflict must guarantee not only the security of the population of Mountainous Karabagh Republic (MKR)–but also ensure that MKR would not subordinate to Azerbaijan–and would no longer be qualified as an enclave.
"There is a struggle–and the struggle continues. No one has declared that the conflict is over," Sargsian said in stressing that the international community is actively pursuing a resolution.
Commenting on recent speculation that Armenia wants to convey its war-readiness–via photos of its president taken in the trenches of Karabagh–the defense minister said–"neither the republic’s president nor I–to put it plainly–are new to trenches–and we do not visit these positions just once a year." He explained that President Kocharian wanted to personally witness the great progress that has taken place in Karabagh in 2004.