Defense minister, French envoy mull Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution
By Rashid Shirinov
Azerbaijan’s Minister of Defense, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov met with French Ambassador to Baku Aurelia Bouchez on March 10.
The sides discussed issues of strengthening military relations between Azerbaijan and France, the military-political situation in the region, the problems of international and regional security, as well as prospects for development of the cooperation.
Informing the French diplomat about the current situation on the contact line of Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, Hasanov stressed that Armenia's destructive position on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict creates a serious threat to the regional security.
The minister emphasized that the solution of this issue is to compel Armenia to fulfill the requirements of the UN Security Council resolutions within norms and principles of international law.
France along with the U.S. and Russia is a co-chair country of the OSCE Minsk Group established to broker a peace to the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Azerbaijan and Armenia for over two decades have been locked in conflict, which emerged over Armenian territorial claims to Azerbaijan. Since the 1990s war, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.
The UN Security Council has adopted four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal from the occupied lands of Azerbaijan, but they have not been enforced to this day.
Further noting the importance of the bilateral relations in the sphere of defense, Hasanov highly appreciated the current state of cooperation between Azerbaijan and France in the military and military-technical spheres, as well as in the field of military education.
Bouchez, in turn, noted France's interest in implementing joint projects with Azerbaijan in the defense sphere, and stressed the importance of these programs.
The sides also discussed projects implemented in Azerbaijan by a number of French companies manufacturing military products, as well as other issues of mutual interest in the field of defense and security.
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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov
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