Baku, Azerbaijan, March 11
Trend:
Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict can be resolved only by the parties of this conflict, but not international mediators, Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for Russian president, said.
He noted that Russia consistently works within international formats to assist in this conflict's settlement, TASS reported March 11.
But the final decisions, final initiatives can be put forward only by the parties of the conflict, Peskov 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 withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.