UN Secretary General calls on Azerbaijan, Armenia to seek peaceful resolution of Karabakh conflict

Trend:

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres welcomed the meeting between the Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia with the participation of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, said the UN statement.

"[The Secretary General] confirms the UN's support for the mediation efforts of the co-chairs, and also calls on the parties [of the conflict] to take steps to build confidence and show political will to achieve a peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," said the statement.

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.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.