Azernews.Az

The U.S. hopes for progress in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, US ambassador to Azerbaijan, Richard Morningstar told journalists in Baku.

Speaking about United States Secretary of State John Kerry's meetings with Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers Elmar Mammadyarov and Edward Nalbandian, Morningstar noted that US Secretary has been heavily engaged with both Armenia and Azerbaijan, trying to move Nagorno Karabakh conflict towards resolution. Secretary Kerry hopes for the progress in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, ambassador said.

"He met last week individually with ministers of foreign affairs of Azerbaijan as well as Armenia, and he is very interested in the process of finding the solution to the conflict," the ambassador said. "This is a matter that is totally up to parties involved."

Morningstar said further that the U.S. hopes for the meeting of presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia in near future.

The mediating OSCE Minsk Group could not bring again Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents to the negotiating table to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

As a diplomatic source from one of the Minsk Group delegations told ITAR TASS news agency, the next round of talks planned for June 12 in Salzburg will not take place.

According to the source, "it will be possible to talk about such a meeting no earlier than at the end of summer - beginning of autumn".

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group comprising Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.