Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 7 / Trend S. Agayeva /
Azerbaijan regrets that Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian raised issues unrelated to Azerbaijan's non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council, spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Elman Abdullayev told Trend. He was commenting on Armenian Foreign Minister's statements.
"We can only regret that such a person as Foreign Minister raises the issues not related to Azerbaijan's non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council," he said. "Armenian Minister's contradictory, illogical and unfounded statements make doubt that he has an idea about the functioning of international organizations."
"Azerbaijan's possible membership in the UN Security Council will not contribute to raising the authority of this organization," Nalbandian said during a joint briefing with European Union Special Representative for South Caucasus and crisis for Georgia Philippe Lefort, the Armenian media reported.
Abdullayev said that Armenian minister demonstrates nothing but malice and envy. These statements do not correspond to the level of foreign minister. "We heard nothing constructive from the Armenian side," he said.
Representing the country, which occupied 20 percent of the territory of a neighboring country and committed ethnic cleansing in these territories, Armenian Foreign Minister has no right to talk about the threat of using force, Abdullayev said.
"At present, the invader's forces are in the territory of our country," he said. "It is natural that Azerbaijan must strengthen its defense capability."
Besides Hungary and Slovenia, Azerbaijan's candidature was also put forward at the elections of non-permanent members of the UN Security Council scheduled for October 2012-2013.
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 seven 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 peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding regions.