Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Any initiative on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement will remain on the negotiating table until Armenian armed forces are withdrawn from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said at a briefing on July 17 while commenting on Iran's repeated initiatives to mediate in the long-standing dispute.

"Azerbaijan at every opportunity raises the issue of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and will continue to do so," Mammadyarov said.

"The [mediating OSCE Minsk Group] co-chairing countries continue working in this area, but unfortunately, without result," he said. "Azerbaijan is dissatisfied with the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group."

Mammadyarov added that Azerbaijan welcomes any initiatives and efforts to resolve the conflict.

Recently, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Araghchi reiterated Iran's repeated suggestions on mediating the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement, saying Tehran is ready to become a mediator in the conflict resolution. He noted that the conflict must be resolved through negotiations.

According to Araghchi, the conflict parties are interested in resolving the conflict with the aid of the Minsk Group, but if there is willingness of the conflict parties, Iran is also ready to assist in solving the problem.

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.

Peace talks brokered by Minsk Group co-chairs representing the United States, Russia and France have been largely fruitless so far.

The negotiations are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles, also known as Basic Principles. The document envisions a return of the territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijani control; determining the final legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh; a corridor linking Armenia to the region; and the right of all internally displaced persons to return home.