Azernews.Az

BAKU - Liberation of the two strategic Azerbaijani regions around Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh was primarily tabled during talks between Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sarkisian held in St. Petersburg, Russia in June, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov has said.
Speaking to reporters Thursday, Mammadyarov said Russia had made some proposals on ways liberating the Kalbajar and Lachin regions to advance peace talks.
Mammadyarov reminded that in the past Armenia sought ten years to liberate the Kalbajar and Lachin regions, while Azerbaijan demanded that the Armenian troops pull out within one year.
Nagorno Garabagh, which is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, was occupied by Armenia in early 1990s, along with seven other Azerbaijani districts, after large-scale hostilities that killed up to 30,000 people and forced a million Azeris out of their homes.
"We have agreed on these regions returning to Azerbaijani control over five years (after the signing of a peace accord)," the Azerbaijani foreign minister said. "The five-year time frame was also reflected in the Madrid principles [a peace outline proposed by the OSCE mediators]. But Armenia has again put these issues on discussion. Now they are saying that the issues negotiated in St. Petersburg should be touched upon in Almaty, though Kalbajar and Lachin were already discussed in St. Petersburg. If we reach agreement on a given issue, but this very issue is again put on discussion afterwards, holding talks this way is very difficult."
The Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers are expected to meet for further talks on settling the Garabagh conflict in Almaty, Kazakhstan on Saturday. Baku says ways of returning Kalbajar and Lachin to Azerbaijan will be discussed at the ministerial, but Yerevan denies the issue will be tabled.