FM: OSCE MG done everything to help parties to return to negotiating process.
By Rashid Shirinov
Active efforts were made by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing countries and international organizations to stabilize the situation after the April escalation on the line of contact between the Armenian and Azerbaijani troops in Nagorno-Karabakh,Russian Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said.
She made the remarks while commenting on the anniversary of the April battles during a briefing on Apr. 5.
Zakharova said that the OSCE Minsk Group and other mediators have also done everything in order to help the parties to return to the negotiating process.
Particularly, summits in Vienna and St. Petersburg were devoted to this topic in 2016, she added.
“We think that the parties will return to negotiations and resume the dialogue aimed at achieving a sustainable settlement,” noted Zakharova adding that the work is being continued in this direction.
Following the meeting in St. Petersburg, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan confirmed in a joint statement the agreements reached during the Armenian-Azerbaijani summit in Vienna.
These agreements are aimed at stabilizing the situation in the conflict zone and the creation of an atmosphere conducive to advancing the peace process.
Therefore, they agreed, in particular, to increase the number of international observers in the conflict zone, the Kremlin website reported earlier after the meeting of the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian presidents in St. Petersburg on June 20.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov
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