Expert: Karabakh peace process at standstill, as conflicting parties to Karabakh conflict lack political will

 Neither Armenian nor Azerbaijani diplomats can help making a breakthrough in the Karabakh peace process at the current stage, Alexander Iskandaryan, Director of the Caucasus Institute said at discussions on the Karabakh conflict in Yerevan.  

He said that what is happening on the Line of Contact of the Artsakh and the Azerbaijani troops is a result of the maximalist demands of the conflicting parties. "The Armenian parties want Artsakh's independence, while Baku wants its autonomy. Therefore, the conflict will hardly be resolved within the nearest future," Iskandaryan said. The mediators have no task to resolve the conflict, he said. "Their task is to continue the dialogue with participation of the mediators and maintain the status-quo, which is the most optimal option at the moment," the political analyst said.

Richard Giragosian, the head of the Center for Regional Studies, in turn, said Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders will meet in early December. It is obvious, he said, that Baku exerts no efforts towards peaceful resolution of the conflict. Moreover, the anti-Armenian propaganda along with inflammatory rhetoric has increased. "Actually, we are in a state of undeclared war," Giragosian said.  He said the OSCE MG co-chairs should not be blamed for no progress in the peace process, as the sides lack political will. He believes that Yerevan benefits from Baku's failures in the domestic democracy and foreign policy. 
Earlier, U.S. Co-Chair of the OSCE MG, Ambassador James Warlick said the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders may meet in December immediately after the Dec 6 Constitutional referendum.  The Armenian side has confirmed the future meeting, while Azerbaijan says there are no specific arrangements on the issue.