Moscow to continue its mediation in Nagorno-Karabakh process

By Azernews

By Rashid Shirinov

Russia intends to continue its mediatory mission regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, together with other co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group and on the basis of coordinated approaches.

Russian Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Maria Zakharova announced about this at a briefing on March 10.

"Russia considers it necessary to resolve the conflict on the basis of the approaches set forth in the statements of the presidents of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chair countries," Zakharova said.

Russia along with the U.S. and France is one of the co-chair countries of the OSCE Minsk Group established to broker a peace to the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

Armenia still controls fifth part of Azerbaijan's territory and rejects implementing four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding districts.

She added that these statements call on the sides to the conflict to resolve disputable issues without the use of force, on the basis of the territorial integrity of states and the right of peoples to self-determination.

"The agreements reached through Russia’s mediation are important points of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement process," Zakharova said.

She recalled that during the April escalation on the contact line between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, Moscow played a decisive role in bringing the sides of the conflict back to the ceasefire regime.