Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept.11
By Anakhanum Khidayatova - Trend:
French authorities are not aware of the "cultural days" of the country in Nagorno-Karabakh and they are not in any way involved in their organization, French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Pascal Monnier told Trend exclusively Sept. 11.
He was commenting on the "cultural days of France" to be held Sept.17-19 in Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh region occupied by Armenia.
France does not recognize Nagorno-Karabakh as an "independent" state and hence has no bilateral relations with its so-called authorities, according to the ambassador.
As a friend of both Azerbaijan and Armenia, France remains fully committed to its mediation role, with the Russian Federation and the US, on finding a negotiated solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, he added.
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 two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
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