International mediation mechanism for Armenia, Azerbaijan conflict “does not seem fit for purpose”: Bryza

The Minsk Group of the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has mediated between Azerbaijan and Armenia since 1992. Co-chaired by the US, Russia, and France, its role has been thrown back into the spotlight by the military skirmishes that broke out between the neighboring South Caucasus states in July, marking the second most serious flareup in fighting between the two adversaries since their 1994 ceasefire following their war over the Nagorno Karabakh breakaway territory.

The existing international mediation mechanism to contain conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan "does not seem fit-for-purpose," according to the former US diplomat who served as one of its three co-chairs from 2006 to 2009.

Further explaining the insufficiency of the Minsk Group in the face of the new hostilities, Matthew Bryza—a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center and former US ambassador to Azerbaijan and US deputy assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs—said: "These latest clashes may have unleashed a dangerous new geopolitical dynamic: heavy weapons fire near strategic transportation assets, military posturing between Russia and Turkey, and lack of an appropriate mediation mechanism. In the absence of US or EU leadership, it may be up to Turkey and Russia to redirect Azerbaijan and Armenia away from the battlefield and toward the negotiating table."

"It may fall to Ankara and Moscow to fill a diplomatic vacuum and convince their respective allies to return to the negotiating table. Despite sharp differences with Russia and Turkey on many fronts, the United States and its European allies would be wise to encourage and shape such a forum," Bryza stressed.