CONTEMPORARY EURASIA VOLUME VII (1, 2) Contemporary-Eurasia-3new | Page 125

LILIT GALSTYAN
ceasefi re. The presidents agreed to use Madrid Principles as a basis to ini-
tiate the fi nal settlement of the NK confl ict. 48
Furthermore, another signifi cant event concerning the NK settlement
that took place during the administration of Dmitry Medvedev was the
L’Aquila Summit in 2009. The Summit was famous in two ways: joint
statement of the three Co-Chairs and the presentation of the updated ver-
sion of the Madrid Principles. According to the Co-Chairs, the updated
Basic Principles stood for a compromise between the right to territorial
integrity and the right to self-determination. 49
However, the updated version fell short of a fi nalized settlement and
further meetings were organized for fi nding a common ground between
the opposing presidents. As such, on January 25, 2010, Medvedev hosted
a meeting in Sochi with his Azerbaijani and Armenian counterparts. An-
other important meeting that was organized during Dmitry Medvedev’s
presidency was the Muskoka Summit in June 2010. Nonetheless, the
meetings did not produce positive results, as according to Aliyev, Arme-
nians were not ready to take the Basic Principles as a basis for resolving
the confl ict peacefully. However, it is worth to state that Medvedev did
not give up and still believed in resolution of the NK confl ict. 50 As such,
on August 20, 2010, during his fi rst state visit to Armenia, he indicated,
“In spite of the challenges and contradicting emotional statements of the
sides, Russia continues working with Azerbaijan and Armenia as we be-
lieve that it is of utmost importance to preserve peace and order within
the region.” 51 Furthermore, Dmitry Medvedev once again highlighted
the importance of regional stability and the mutual talks during Serzh
Sargsyan’s fi rst state visit to Russia. As such, on October 23, 2011 the
Russian president stated, “Our usual meetings are intended to discuss the
ongoing events. These discussions are wonderful opportunities to speak
of the resolution of the NK confl ict by outlining necessary guidelines for
the future.” More to that, during the Armenian state visit, the Russian
president also prioritized the preservation of good relations and military
cooperation with Armenia. 52
48
49
50
51
52
Dominik Sonnleitner, “Russia’s backyard-unresolved confl icts in the Caucasus,” Politics in
Central Europe vol. 12, issue No. 1 (2016): 90.
Vadim Romashov and Helena Rytövuori-Apunen, “Russia’s Karabakh policy: new momen-
tum in regional perspective,” Caucasus Survey (2016), 4.
Pokalova, “Confl ict Resolution in Frozen Confl icts: Timing in Nagorno-Karabakh,” 77.
Dmitry Medvedev, “Joint press-conference of the Presidents of Armenia and Russia in the
framework of the state visit of the president of RF to RA,” President of the Republic of Ar-
menia, 20 August 2010, http://www.president.am/en/interviews-and-press-conferences/
item/2010/08/20/news-54/(accessed January 21, 2017).
Dmitry Medvedev, “Rusastany exel e ev vstahoren mnum e Hayastani arajin gorcynkery,”
(in Armenian) [Russia had always remained the fi rst partner of Armenia] Hayastani Hanra-
petutyun, No.194, 25 October 2011, 4.
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