Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

A meeting of full delegations of Azerbaijan and Armenia to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe was held in the framework of the PACE summer session on June 26 in Strasbourg.

Afterwards, PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon told journalists that it was a meeting between himself and the delegations.

"In the spirit of democracy, we have come to the conclusion that it is necessary to discuss further ways of cooperation. I should note that I felt there is a desire to work together from both sides. We'll meet again," Mignon said, expressing satisfaction with the discussions.

The PACE president added that such a meeting is also possible at the next session of the organization.

On the basis of the reached agreement, neither of the chairmen of the delegations gave an explanation regarding the talks.

Earlier, Mignon said the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict would be discussed on June 26 with the Azerbaijani and Armenian delegations.

He also said it is necessary to take advantage of Armenia's chairmanship in the CoE Committee of Ministers, which will further be presided by Austria and then Azerbaijan.

Besides, on the first day of the PACE summer session, chairman of the Azerbaijani delegation to PACE Samad Seyidov said Azerbaijan hopes that after sitting down at the negotiating table, the Armenian delegation will start discussing the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against the neighboring country. Since a lengthy war between the two South Caucasus countries that displaced over a million Azerbaijanis and ended with the signing of a precarious cease-fire in 1994, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on a pullout from the occupied territories.

PACE on June 24 started its summer session, which will last till June 28. A group of parliament members led by the head of the Azerbaijani delegation to PACE Samad Seyidov attends the session. The delegation includes MPs Elkhan Suleymanov, Sevinj Fataliyeva, Ganira Pashayeva, Rafael Huseynov, Sabir Hajiyev, Rovshan Rzayev, Sahiba Gafarova, Fazil Mustafa and Aydin Abbasov.