Azernews.Az

BAKU – The European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee on Wednesday held hearings on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno Karabakh that were joined by OSCE mediators.

US Minsk Group co-chair Robert Bradtke said the MG considers its work effective at this stage of the Karabakh conflict settlement.

"The OSCE MG format is flexible enough and can promptly react to all changes that occur in the region," Bradtke said. He added that the European Union is seen playing a great role in the peace process in the future.

Bernard Fassier of France said the EU’s role in Karabakh resolution is crucial. "The EU’s role is to at least prepare the civil society in both countries [for peace]."

Fassier said the statement of the US, French and Russian leaders issued in late May called on the parties to take "a decisive step" to adopt basic principles of the conflict resolution. He added that if the basic principles are not approved in the near future, the MG co-chairs will have to lay out a new concept concerning Karabakh settlement.

The joint statement by Presidents Barack Obama, Nicolas Sarkozy and Dmitry Medvedev, issued at the G8 summit in the French resort of Deauville, called on the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia "to prepare their people for peace, not war". They urged the two presidents to finalize the basic principles of a peace agreement during the summit in the Russian city of Kazan on June 25.

Azerbaijan and Armenia fought a lengthy war in the early 1990s that ended with the signing of a precarious cease-fire. Armenian armed forces have since occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno Karabakh. Peace talks have been largely fruitless so far.