Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict: Armenia and Azerbaijan between Conflict Resolution and Human Rights

Abstract

The history of resolution of some intra-state and inter-state protracted conflicts- among new neighbors of Europe- is at least as old as the independent statehood of the parties to the conflict. The collapse of the Soviet Union did not only leave those countries with unresolved conflicts but also with the unrealized project of democratization and liberalization. The newly independent countries relied on the international community, primarily on leading powers and international organizations, to assist them both in conflict settlement and democratization. Hence, conflict resolution and human rights became a part of their international relations and were mainstreamed within the foreign policy agenda. Unlike other foreign policy issues, conflict resolution and human rights have been societal processes, which require constant communication among domestic and international actors over meanings and actions.

Through studying the domestic and international discourses on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict the following paper seeks to identify to what degree communications over conflict resolution and human rights interact with each other in the countries of transition, namely Armenia and Azerbaijan. Based on Laclau and Mouffle' s post structural discourse theory, the paper will identify the core articulated stances of the parties to the conflict. In the last chapter, findings will be assessed against Morton Deutsch's variables on "constructive conflict resolution" which represent the human values upon which both conflict resolution and human rights are built. Finally, I will infer to what degree the parties to the conflict are ready to establish common agenda and understanding of conflict resolution