Moscow sees opportunities to break stalemate in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
By Mushvig Mehdiyev
Moscow believes that there are opportunities for fetching a breakthrough in the settlement process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
In his comments to Russian media on April 22, Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov said Russia has done and is doing more than anyone else to find a solution to this very complicated, but solvable crisis.
"Russia continues working with the U.S., France and the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," he noted
“We regularly communicate with the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers and our president also keep on discussing the conflict during talks with the Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders," Lavrov said.
Referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin's upcoming visit to Yerevan this week, Lavrov viewed the visit as a possible mean to boost the settlement process.
"There are opportunities to find a commonly acceptable basis for advancing towards the conflict's resolution. We believe that the upcoming talks, including those in Yerevan will allow to speed up this process," Lavrov concluded.
Russia sees no military solution to the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh as voiced in addresses of its top officials. Moscow has numerously called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to restraint from attempts causing any military escalations.
In comments to the press earlier this month, Lavrov has clearly stated that his country does not believe a military conflict will break out in between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh, even if the rhetoric coming from both Baku and Yerevan could lead to believe otherwise.
The conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh was sparked after Armenian troops invaded large swathes of land in Azerbaijan in the early 1990s. Following bloody skirmishes, Armenia armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized and historical territory. The conflict has yet to be resolved since Armenia has systematically refused to abide by international calls to withdraw from the Nagorno-Karabakh and seven other adjacent regions.
- - -
Follow Mushvig Mehdiyev on Twitter: @Mushviggo
Follow us on Twitter: @Azernews