Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 27
By Elmira Tariverdiyeva – Trend:
The meeting between Azerbaijani and Russian foreign ministers Elmar Mammadyarov and Sergey Lavrov was constructive, said the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, according to a message on the ministry’s website.
She made the remarks at a briefing on Jan. 27.
The sides discussed concrete proposals and areas of negotiation concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, according to her.
Zakharova added that meetings with the Russian side dedicated to the conflict settlement will undoubtedly continue.
Mammadyarov paid a working visit to Moscow Jan. 24. The meeting was initiated by the Russian side.
It was earlier reported that the two countries’ foreign ministers discussed the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict’s settlement and exchanged views on the issues raised by the countries’ presidents at the Vienna and Saint Petersburg meetings.
Mammadyarov reiterated Azerbaijan's position on the conflict’s settlement and noted that the current status quo needs to be changed.
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.