Azernews.Az

By Rashid Shirinov

Russia welcomes Azerbaijan and Armenia's readiness to intensify the negotiation process on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Russian Foreign Ministry’s Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing on October 26.

She was commenting on the results of the Geneva meeting between the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents, TASS reported.

"We welcome the declared readiness of the sides to intensify the negotiation process and take additional steps aimed at reducing tension on the contact line," Zakharova said.

She also noted that Russia supports the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, who are currently working on the issues related to holding another meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers to discuss the essential issues of the conflict settlement and possible measures to stabilize the situation.

Zakharova further expressed regret that the situation in the conflict zone remains difficult: "We urge Baku and Yerevan to show a constructive approach to find solutions to unresolved issues."

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict 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 regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

Until now, Armenia controls fifth part of Azerbaijan's territory and rejects implementing four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding districts.

Azerbaijan has long ago stated it is ready to settle the conflict through direct negotiations with Armenia with mediation of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs. However, the Armenian side is constantly trying to make up reasons to avoid a constructive dialogue and preserve the unacceptable status quo in Nagorno-Karabakh.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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