EU needs solidarity on Nagorno-Karabakh

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- The European Union should respect territorial integrity and sovereignty in a common principle for the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, analysts said.

Armenia and Azerbaijan went to war over Nagorno-Karabakh in the early 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Turkish relations with Armenia, meanwhile, are strained by claims of genocide during the Ottoman Empire.

Ankara and Yerevan, however, signed protocols aimed at repairing diplomatic relations at an October summit in Zurich, Switzerland.

Baku is upset over the deal as Ankara sided with its Azeri partners by closing its border with Armenia during the conflict in the 1990s.

Leaders from Azerbaijan and Armenia are in talks with negotiators from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, though few details from that meeting have emerged.

Borut Grgic, a non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council, tells the Azeri news agency News.Az that Europe needs a united stance on the conflict.

"The EU should start by having a common set of principles that outline its position on the frozen conflicts in the South Caucasus -- respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty are two fundamentals," he said.

Baku has threatened in recent days to resort to force should negotiations fail. Grgic said that while conflict was unlikely, the situation was straining regional affairs.