Azernews.Az

Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said Wednesday that Azerbaijan is ready to work on a peace accord to settle its long-standing conflict with Armenia over Nagorno Karabakh.

Mammadyarov said that "in order not to waste time", work should begin on a comprehensive peace accord on the basis of the issues agreed and efforts to iron out the remaining issues should be expedited.

Peace talks are underway on the basis of the Madrid principles, a peace outline proposed by the mediating OSCE Minsk Group’s co-chairs. The Madrid Document covers a return of the Armenia-occupied territories surrounding Nagorno Karabakh to Azerbaijani control, a future determination of the region’s legal status and the right of internally displaced persons and refugees to return to their homes.

Mammadyarov added that during the Minsk Group co-chairs’ visit to the region in the coming days, discussions will be held on further efforts aiming to reach agreement upon the issues that "remain open".

The Karabakh conflict emerged during the last few years of the Soviet Union. 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory, including the Nagorno Karabakh region, has been under Armenian occupation since the two South Caucasus republics signed a precarious cease-fire in 1994 following a brutal war. Efforts by the Minsk Group, co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France, have been largely fruitless so far.