Azernews.Az

BAKU – Activists of Azerbaijan’s hardline Garabagh Liberation Organization (GLO) on Monday protested at the participation of Armenia’s ultra-nationalist Dashnaktsutyun party at Socialist International’s (SI) regional conference in Baku.

The protesters chanted slogans "Armenian Dashnaks, leave Baku now" outside the business center at the National Park hosting the event. They managed to enter the center’s lobby but the police forced them out.

GLO head Akif Naghi said several protesters were detained.

The regional conference of Socialist International on CIS, the Caucasus and Black Sea regions is attended by a member of Dashnaktsutyun bureau Mario Nalbandian and head of the party’s political affairs Kiro Manoyan.

SI is an international non-governmental organization of social democratic slant. It comprises 156 parties from 126 countries.

SI Secretary General Luis Ayala said opening the conference that discussions will focus on regional conflicts and elections to be held in CIS states.

Touching on the Upper (Nagorno) Karabakh conflict, Ayala noted that the Azerbaijani and Armenian governments continue negotiating a settlement to the dispute and politicians play a major role in the peace process.

Ayala said SI aims to create a platform for dialog on resolving the long-standing conflict. The first meeting to reach that goal was held in Yerevan in June, he said, adding that such events would facilitate dialog.

Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in conflict for two decades. OSCE-brokered peace talks kicked off after a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a shaky cease-fire in 1994. Armenian armed forces continue to occupy over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory.