Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 12
By Elchin Mehdiyev - Trend:
The Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists (AECR) of the European Parliament is ready to provide Azerbaijan and Armenia a platform to discuss ways to resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, president of the organization Jan Zahradil told reporters Feb. 12 in Baku.
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.
Zahradil said that the alliance isn't ready to offer options for settlement of certain conflicts.
The Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists of the European Parliament can only offer a platform for mutual dialogue, better understanding and exchange of views, which may contribute to emergence of better ideas to resolve the conflict, according to him.