Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 9 / Trend E. Tariverdiyeva /
OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs looking to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will visit the region this week, Russian mediator Yuri Merzlyakov told Trend .
"During the meeting the sides will continue to discuss the updated version of the Madrid document," Merzlyakov said over the phone from Moscow.
The co-chairman said the next meeting between Azerbaijani and Armenian Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsyan will be held in early 2010.
"We have too little time before New Year. I think that we will fail to prepare a meeting for the presidents by late December," Merzlyakov said.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts. Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Russia, France, and the U.S. - are currently holding the peace negotiations.
Do you have any feedback? Contact our journalist at agency@trend.az
