Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

The next trilateral meeting of the Turkish, Azerbaijani and Iranian foreign ministers will be held in Iran.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu made the remarks after a ministerial meeting in the Turkish city of Van attended by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

The first meeting of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Iranian foreign ministers was held in Iranian city Urmia and the second one in Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan city.

Davutoglu said the meeting discussed the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, situation in Ukraine and the region as a whole.

He also said that during the meeting the parties discussed the economic and political situation, as well as regional problems.

They also reviewed the situation in the Caucasus and the Middle East.

The issue of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and NATO's activity in the region were also in the spotlight of the foreign ministers.

Davutoglu said the situation in Ukraine and talks on Iran's nuclear program were among the topics under discussion.

Ukraine's territorial integrity issue

Speaking about Ukraine, Davutoglu said Turkey will not recognize the results of the referendum in Crimea scheduled for March 16, if a decision to join Russia is reached.

Currently, Turkey is holding political consultations with all parties to try and reach a settlement of the political crisis in Ukraine.

Davutoglu also stressed that Ukraine's territorial integrity is the most important issue for Ankara. Earlier, Davutoglu urged canceling the referendum in Crimea.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Mammadyarov said Azerbaijan is looking for the restoration of stability in Ukraine and settling the existing problems peacefully.

Mammadyarov said all actions must be done in accordance with the constitution of Ukraine.

He also stressed that Azerbaijan stands for preservation of Ukraine's territorial integrity, noting that the territorial integrity issue is very important for Azerbaijan.

As a result of protests in Ukraine, the country's President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted on February 22. The VerkhovnaRada (parliament) has approved the new composition of the parliament and is preparing to hold pre-term elections.

On February 26 several thousand people participating in two rallies gathered in front of Supreme Council of Crimea. After the escalation of the protest actions in Crimea, the Federation Council supported Russian President Vladimir Putin's appeal regarding the use of the Russian armed forces in Ukraine pending "the normalization of the socio-political situation in that country".

The Crimean parliament made a decision on joining Russia on March 6. The deputies also voted for the referendum on the status of the peninsula on March 16.

Bilateral meeting

Azerbaijani and Iranian Foreign Ministers discussed the bilateral relations and regional issues between the two countries in Van.

The Mammadyarov -Zarif meeting was held behind the closed doors.