ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book seeks to provide a balanced and comprehensive analysis of the unfinished business of the Armenian-Azerbaijani negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh (N-K). The cause of the conflict is ethno-territorial. It categorizes the conflict as identity/secession-based because it involves the relative status of Karabakh Armenians in relation to Azerbaijan. The book explains the themes of conflict resolution, conflict management and conflict transformation. The qualitative methodology also enables us to recognise and analyse the incompatible goals of the conflict parties and why there had been so many negotiation attempts. Further, the contingency approach is explained because it provides a framework that permits a systematic analysis of the underlying structures that shaped conflict and the complex relationship of the conflict management process. All the approaches are adoptable as an instrument for conflict research.
