MOSCOW, September 28. /TASS/. Azerbaijan needs to ensure full integration of ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh into the political, economic and social system of the country in order to avoid the mistakes of Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, said Federation Council Deputy Speaker Konstantin Kosachev.
"The Azerbaijani leadership has a unique chance to carry out in an extremely delicate, legal and transparent manner the mission that Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine completely failed earlier. After all, the problems these countries faced were more humanitarian than territorial in nature," he said on Telegram.
He said those who put territory above the interests and rights of people failed.
"But Baku has an opportunity not to fall into a similar trap. First of all, by ensuring the full integration of the Armenian population of the until-recently-disputed territory into the humanitarian, political, economic, social, that is, full integration, into the constitutional system of Azerbaijan," the lawmaker said.
He said he was far from telling Azerbaijan what to do in this unuasual situation.
"But nevertheless, I will note that the chance is, without exaggeration, historic, and its realization can become an obvious reputational plus for Baku," Kosachev said.
He added that the Azerbaijani parliament should take this process under parliamentary control.
The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh escalated on September 19. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said on September 20 that an agreement had been reached with the participation of the Russian peacekeeping force to suspend counterterrorism measures in Nagorno-Karabakh. On September 24, some Nagorno-Karabakh residents started to flee to Armenia. A refugee accommodations center was opened in the Armenian town of Goris near the border, where thousands of refugees have already arrived. On September 28, Azerbaijan started registring Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh in order to determine their legal status.