Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijan's position on the settlement process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the upcoming negotiations on the issue and the works done in this regard were among the main issues discussed during the 5th session of the heads of Azerbaijan's diplomatic services in Baku on July 7.

After the meeting, Deputy Head of Azerbaijan's Presidential Administration and Chief of the Foreign Relations Department Novruz Mammadov said, President Ilham Aliyev devoted main part of his speech to Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, local media reported.

Mammadov said strengthening of Azerbaijan's position on the conflict in international arena, directing constant attention to the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict within the UN Security Council, the Non-Aligned Movement and other international organizations were highlighted at the meeting of diplomats.

" President Aliyev once again reiterated that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will be resolved within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan," Mammadov said.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since a lengthy war in the early 1990s that displaced over one million Azerbaijanis, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.

The UN Security Council's four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal have not been enforced to this day.

Peace talks, mediated by Russia, France and the U.S. through the OSCE Minsk Group, are underway on the basis of a peace outline proposed by the Minsk Group co-chairs and dubbed the Madrid Principles. The negotiations have been largely fruitless so far.