OSCE MG discusses Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in Washington
By Sara Rajabova
The United States voiced commitment to work with Russia and France on settling the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
“In meetings in Washington, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs heard from the U.S. that we are committed to working with Russia and France on Nagorno-Karabakh peace and a settlement,” U.S. co-chairman of Minsk Group James Warlick tweeted on July 7.
The OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs from the U.S. (James Warlick), France (Pierre Andrieu) and Russia (Igor Popov) gathered in Washington on July 6 to discuss the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The so-chairs held meetings at the U.S. Defense Ministry and the National Security Council to discuss Nagorno-Karabakh conflict’s peaceful settlement.
The OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs are working on a meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents.
The latest meeting between Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan took place in Paris, France last October through the French president's initiative.
Earlier, U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan Robert Cekuta said the visit of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs to the South Caucasus is under discussion and they intend to mull the organizing presidential meeting.
The Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents periodically meet to discuss the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on the sidelines of negotiations. However, the talks have so far failed to produce any genuine results, given the Armenian side's inclination to remain belligerent rather than engage in peace-making.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since then, a lengthy war in the early 1990s displaced over one million Azerbaijanis and led Armenian armed forces to occupy over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.
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Sara Rajabova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on
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